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History of Georgia 



By 



Robert Preston Brooks, Ph. D. 

Associate Professor of Georgia History, University of Georgia 







ATKINSON, MENTZER & COMPANY 

BOSTON NEW YORK CHICAGO 

ATLANTA DALLAS 



Copyrisht Wl,> 
Hy R. P. BROOKS. 



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©CI.A35741t> 



PREFACE 

In the preparation of this text I have followed the newer ten- 
dencies in historial writing. Many uninteresting details which 
serve only to confuse the pupil have been omitted. Among such 
details are the minor events of the successive gubernatorial admin- 
istrations, the careers of men of slight importance, and descrip- 
tions of military campaigns. The space, gained by these omissions 
I have given to matters of fundamental importance in the social 
and economic development of the state. The economic motive 
behind the settlement of North Georgia ; the development of the 
cotton industry; the growth and effects of slavery; the history- of 
education and of transportation, are some of the matters treated 
in detail. Other new features are the unusual amount of space 
given to the post-bellum period ; the large number of maps ; and 
the appendix on the civil government of Georgia. 

I have kept constantly in view the necessity of writing a usable 
book. The manuscript was read and criticised by a number of 
public school and normal school teachers of the state, and I am 
led to hope from their opinions that a text constructed along the 
above lines will prove acceptable to teachers and pupils. 

Where the book is used for very young people, I suggest the 
omission of Chapters V, XI, XIV, XIX, XXV. 

I am under deep and lasting obligations to the many friends 
who placed at my disposal historical materials and photographs, 
and especially to those who read the manuscript in whole or In 
part. I wish to acknowledge particularly the assistance of Pro- 

iii 



fessor Willis H. Bocock, whose friendly criticisms and suggestions 
made while reading the proof greatly improved the form and 
content of the volume. I am also glad of the opportunity to 
express my appreciation of the many courtesies extended me by 
Mr. W. J. DeRenne, who has rendered a valuable public service 
in collecting the sources of our state history. 

R. P. Brooks. 
University of Georgia, 
Athens, Ga. 
October, 191 3. 



IV 



CONTENTS 

Page 

Preface iii 

Maps and Illustrations xii 

List of Important Dates vx 

Chapter 

I. Georgia: The Land: 

The Importance of Geography 5 

Area and Boundaries 6 

The Mountains of North Georgia 6 

The Piedmont Plateau 9 

The Fall Line 9 

The Coastal Plain 11 

The Seacoast 12 

Climate 12 

II. The Aborigines of Georgia: 

The Name ''Indian" 15 

Southeastern Indians 15 

Indian Characteristics 17 

The Indian Village 19 

Political Arrangements 19 

Tribal Wars 21 

Religion 21 

Agriculture 22 

Manufacturing 24 

Customs 2S 

Indian Mounds 27 

Use of Tobacco 28 

III. The English Background of Georgia History: 

Eighteenth Century England 33 

Prisons for Debt 36 

Hi.rsh Criminal Laws 37 

Scheme to Found a New Colony 38 

James Edward Oglethorpe 39 



V 



IV. Beginnings of the Colony, 1733-1740: 

Analysis of the Charter 42 

Sailing of the First Emigrants 47 

Town of Savannah Begun 48 

Oglethorpe Treats with the Indians 48 

Visit of Indian Chiefs to England 49 

Coming of the Salzburgers 49 

Coming of the Moravians 52 

The Scots Settle on the Altamaha River 53 

Frederica, Augusta and other villages , 53 

Parliamentary Appropriations 54 

Government of the Colony 54 

V. The Critical Period, 1733-1752: 

Unfavorable Physical Conditions 57 

Land Tenure Laws 58 

Prohibition of Slavery and of Rum 59 

Repeal of the Land Law 63 

Indented Servants 64 

Introduction of Slavery 66 

VI. The Spanish War, 17 40- 17 42: 

The War Caused by Boundary Dispute 69 

Financial, Economic and Religious Difficulties. 70 

Oglethorpe Invades Florida 72 

The Spaniards Invade Georgia 75 

Battle of Bloody Marsh 77 

Importance of the War 79 

VTI. Georgia Becomes a Royal Province, 1754: 

Why the Trustees Resigned 81 

Types of Colonial Governments 81 

The New Government of Georgia 83 

The Three Royal Governors 85 

Extension of the Boundary to the St. Mary's 

River 87 

VIII. Material Development, 17 54- 1776: 

Revival of the Colony after 1750 90 

Small Farms Superseded by Plantations 92 

vi 



Social Classes 95 

Laws to Control Slaves 95 

Agriculture and Other Industries 97 

Commerce 98 

IX. The Revolution, iyy4-i'jy8: 

Nature of the Revolution loi 

Colonial Trade lOi 

Question of Taxation 102 

Stamp Act, 1765 103 

Division in Sentiment in Georgia 105 

First Revolutionary Meeting in Georgia 107 

Fall of Royalist Government 112 

Hall, Gwinnett and AValton Sign the Declara- 
tion of Independence 113 

X. The Revolution, lyyS-iySj: 

Campaigns in South Georgia 115 

Fall of Savannah 115 

British Conquest of North Georgia 118 

French and American Attack on Savannah. . . 120 

Turning of the Tide 122 

Political Affairs During the War 123 

XI. Georgia Enters the Federal Union, lySj-ijSg: 

The Articles of Confederation 130 

The Federal Constitution 132 

State Constitution of 1789 137 

State Constitution of 1798 137 

XII. Settlement of Middle and Xorth Georgia. 17S2- 
iSoO: 
Immigration of the \ irginians and Carolin- 
ians 141 

Wilkes County Settled 141 

The Head Rights System of Land Distrihution 141 

Franklin and Washington Counties 142 

Societ> in the Early Nineteenth Century 146 

vii 



XIII. The Yazoo Land Fraud, 1795-1814: 

Claims of Spain, the United States and Georgia 

to West Florida 152 

First Yazoo Sale i53 

Sale of 1795 154 

Rescinding Act of 1796 158 

Cession of Western Lands to the United States 160 

The Yazoo Fraud in Congress 161 

The Supreme Court Settles the Controversy. . 163 

XIV. Political Parties, 1787- 1 840: 

Federalists and Antifederalists 165 

Jefferson and the Democratic-Republicans... 166 
Why the Federalists Lost their Georgia Fol- 
lowing 167 

Era of Personal Politics 168 

Troup and Clarke Parties 171 

Influence of Protective Tariffs on Parties. ... 173 

Nullification 1 74 

Whig and Democratic Parties 178 

XV. Pushing Back the Frontier: Creek Indians, i733~ 
1827: 

Home of the Creeks 181 

Cessions under Colonial and State Governments 182 

The Creek War 183 

Cessions of 1802 and 1804 184 

Lottery System of Land Distribution, 1803. . . 185 

Boundary Extended to the Flint River 188 

Governor Troup and the Final Cession 191 

XVI. Georgia and the Cherokee Nation, 1783-1838: 

Home of the Cherokees 195 

Why Cherokee Land was not in Demand Be- 
fore 1820 196 

Semi-Civilization of the Cherokees in Nine- 
teenth Century 196 

Extension of the Jurisdiction of Georgia Laws 

over Cherokee Land 199 



Vlll 



Case of the Cherokee Nation versus the State 

of Georgia I99 

Worcester versus the State of Georgia 200 

Governor Lumpkin and the Final Cession. . . . 202 
XVII. Origin of the Black Belt in Georgia: 

Definition of the Term ''Black Belt" 208 

Importance of the Invention of the Cotton Gin . 208 

Revival of Slavery 213 

White Counties Become Black 214 

Migration of the Poorer Whites 217 

Migration of the Planters with their Slaves. 218 

Growth of the Cotton Industry in Georgia. 219 
XVIII. Slavery: Economic and Social Aspects: 

The Treatment of Slaves 221 

Number of Slaveholding and Non-slaveholding 

Families 226 

The Cotton Plantation 226 

Slow Growth of Manufactures 228 

Low Character of Slave Labor 230 

Effect of Slavery on the Soil 231 

Effect of Slavery on Society 232 

XIX. Slavery: Political History: 

The Civil War Caused by the Struggle over 

the Extension of Slavery into the West 237 

Why Extension was a Necessity to the South. 238 

Missouri Compromise; Admission of Texas. . . 238 

The Compromise of 1850 241 

Compromise of 1850 in Georgia 243 

Howell Cobb Elected Governor 244 

Kansas-Nebraska Bill 245 

Dred Scott Decision 245 

Rise of the Republican Party 247 

XX. Secession, 1861 : 

Rift in the Democratic Party 250 

Why Secession Followed Lincoln's Election. . 251 

History of Secession Movements 252 

Northern Opinion as to Secession Changes. . . . 253 

ix 



Election of i860 in Georgia 255 

Alexander H. Stephens and the Union Cause. 256 

Secession Convention, 1861 260 

Thomas R. R. Cobb and Secession 263 

The Montgomery Convention 264 

Georgians in the Montgomery Convention. . . . 264 
XXI. A Half Century of Progress, 1810-1860: 

Growth of Population 267 

Agricultural Development 267 

Backward State of Manufacturing 268 

Travel and Transportation Before the Era of 

Railroads 270 

History of Early Railroads in Georgia 273 

Educational History: the Academy; Old Field 
Schools; Poor School Fund; Manual Labor 

Schools; Higher Education 277 

Election of 1857: Joseph E. Brown, Governor. 283 
XXn. Georgia in the War Between the States: 

General Plan of the War 286 

Invasion Reaches Georgia 288 

Burning of Atlanta 290 

Sherman's March to the Sea 289 

Georgia's Contribution to the Confederacy. . . 297 

XXIII. Reconstruction, 1865-1868: 

The Presidential Reconstruction, 1865 300 

Legislation to Restrain Freedmen . 302 

The Freedmen's Bureau 304. 

Congress Overthrows the President's Arrange- 
ments 305 

Fourteenth Amendment Rejected 306 

Bullock Elected Governor : Fourteenth Amend- 
ment Adopted 307 

XXIV. Reconstruction, 1868-1871: 

Organization of a Conservative Party 309 

Expulsion of Negro Legislators 312 

Third Reconstruction of Georgia: Fifteenth 
Amendment Adopted 3^4 

X 



The Campaign of 1870 315 

Character of the Reconstruction Government. 316 

Failure of Reconstruction 317 

XXV. The Social and Economic Revolution: 

Southern Conditions in 1865 321 

Passing of the Old Social Order 322 

Rise of the Middle Class 322 

Establishment of Public School System 323 

Fall of Plantation System 324 

Laws to Control Freedmen 325 

The Ku Klux Klan 326 

The New Systems of Farming 327 

Negro Landownership 33 1 

XXVI. Recovery and Development Since i8yo: 

Growth of Population 336 

Increase of Wealth 339 

Farms and Farm Products 339 

Growth of Manufactures 342 

The Public School System 343 

The University System 349 

Reform of the Convict Lease System, 1908. . . 354 

The Good Roads Movement 356 

The Prohibition Law, 1907 357 

Disfranchisement Amendment, 1908 358 

Recent Political History 360 

XXVII. Some Great Georgians: 

Crawford Williamson Long 366 

Sidney Lanier 368 

George Foster Pierce 369 

Henry Woodfin Grady 370 

Joel Chandler Harris 373 

Logan Edwin Bleckley 374 

Appendix 377 

I. Civil Government of Georgia. 
11. List of Governors. 

III. List of Counties, with dates of organization and popu- 
lation in 1910. 
IV. Constitution of Georgia. 

xi 



MAPS 

Page 

1. Physical Map of Georgia 7 

2. Original Homes of the Cherokees and Creeks i6 

3. Territory in Dispute Between England, France and 

Spain, 1732 43 

4. Charter Boundaries of Georgia 46 

5. Early Settlements in Georgia, 1 733-1 752 50 

6. Coast of Georgia and Florida: Spanish War 73 

7. Georgia in 1 763 88 

8. Georgia in 1783: Yazoo Land Sales 155 

9. Indian Land Cessions in Georgia 195 

10. The Black Belt of Georgia, i860 209 

11. The Black Belt of Georgia, 1910 210 

12. Territorial Expansion of the United States to i860. . . . 239 

13. Secession Vote in Georgia 261 

14. Georgia Railroads in i860 276 

15. Sherman's March through Georgia 292 

16. Population Movements in Georgia, 1900-1910 338 



XII 



ILLUSTRATIONS 

Oglethorpe Monument, Savannah Frontispiece 

Water Falls in North Georgia 8 

Shipping at Savannah lO 

Palmetto Grove in South Georgia 13 

Indian Implements 23 

Indian Mounds 28 

Indian Pipes 29 

James Edward Oglethorpe 40 

A Rice Plantation 94 

Noble Wymberley Jones. . . . .' 109 

Lyman Hall 112 

Button Gwinnett 125 

James Jackson 159 

William Harris Crawford 169 

John McPherson Berrien 175 

George Michael Troup 190 

Wilson Lumpkin 203 

Whitney's Cotton Gin 211 

Old Time Spinning Wheel 219 

Howell Cobb 242 

Alexander Hamilton Stephens 257 

Robert Toombs 259 

Early Railroad Train 274 

Mercer University 280 

Emory College 282 

Joseph Emerson Brown 284 

xiii 



27- Sherman Marching through Georgia 295 

28. Herschel Vespasian Johnson 301 

29. Benjamin Harvey Hill 310 

30. Ku Klux Costumes 326 

31. Group of Farmers at Agricultural College 333 

32. Agricultural College Educational Train 340 

33. Experimental Plots at Agricultural College 341 

34. Cotton Mill 342 

35. Consolidated Schools 345 

36. University of Georgia, Chapel Building . 350 

37. University of Georgia, Academic Building 351 

38. Georgia School of Technology 353 

39. An Improved Road in Georgia 357 



XIV 



IMPORTANT DATES IN GEORGIA 

HISTORY 

1539. Hernando de Soto traverses Georgia. 

1732. Charter granted by King George II. 

Oglethorpe sails from England with the first emigrants. 

1733. Oglethorpe reaches Georgia, February 12th. Savannah 

begun. 

1734. Salzburgers come. 

1735. Augusta begun. 

1736. Scots settle at Darien. 
Frederica marked out. 

1739- Oglethorpe invades Florida. 

1742. Spaniards invade Georgia. 
Battle of Bloody Marsh. 

1743. Oglethorpe's final departure from the colony. 
1752. Resignation of the Trustees. 

Coming of the Dorchester Colony. 
1754. Georgia becomes a Crown Colony. 

1763. Close of French and Indian War. Georgia's boundary 
extended to the St. Mary's River. 

1776. Lyman Hall, Button Gwinnett and George Walton sign 

the Declaration of Independence. 

1777. First state constitution. 

1778. Georgia adopts Articles of Confederation. 
British take Savannah. 

1779. French and Americans attack Savannah. 

1782. British withdraw from Georgia. 

1783. Close of Revolution. Georgia claims lands westward to 

the Mississippi River. 
1 783- 1 800. Coming of the Virginians and Carolinians to Mid- 
dle Georgia. 

XV ■ 



1784- Charter of the University of Georgia. 

1788. Georgia adopts the Federal Constitution. 

1789. Second state constitution. 
1793- Cotton gin Invented in Georgia. 
1 794- 1 796. Yazoo Frauds. 

1795. Louisville made the capital. 
1798. Third state constitution. 

1 801. Opening of University of Georgia. 

1802. Georgia cedes western lands to United States. 

1803. MllledgevIUe laid out and designated as the capital. 
Establishment of the land lottery. 

1807. First meeting of legislature In MllledgevIUe. 
1 8 19. First steamship to cross the Atlantic sails from Savannah. 
1826. Creek Indians leave Georgia. 

1833. Georgia Railroad and Banking Company chartered. 
Central of Georgia Railroad chartered. 

1836. Western and Atlantic Railroad authorized to be con- 

structed as a state-owned road. 
Emory College chartered. 
Wesleyan Female College chartered. 

1837. Mercer University chartered. 

1838. Cherokees expelled from Georgia. 

1842. Crawford W. Long discovers anaesthesia. 

1845. Supreme Court established. 

1 85 1. Howell Cobb elected Governor on platform advocating 

Clay's Compromise. 
1 86 1. Georgia secedes from the Union. 
Fourth state constitution. 

1864. Sherman destroys Atlanta. 
Sherman's March to the Sea. 

1865. President Johnson reconstructs Georgia. Thirteenth 

Amendment adopted. 
Fifth state constitution. 

1867. Congress overthrows the Johnson government. 

1868. Fourteenth Amendment to the Federal . Constitution 

adopted. 
Sixth state constitution. 



XVI 



Final reconstruction of Georgia. Fifteenth amendment 

adopted. 
Public school system put in operation. 
Seventh state constitution. 
Atlanta becomes the capital. 
State Railroad Commission established. 
Rise of Populist Party. 

Cotton States and International Exposition. 
Local self-taxation for schools authorized. 
Court of Appeals established. 
Agricultural high schools established. 
State College of Agriculture established. 
Legislature passes a state-wide prohibition law. 
Disfranchisement of negroes. 
Abolition of the convict lease system. 
Beginning of good roads movement. 
Constitutional amendment making high schools a part of 

the state school system. 



xvii 




Oglethorpe Monument at Savannah. 



History of Georgia 

CHAPTER I 

GEORGIA: THE LAND 

The Importance of Geography 

The history of a country properly begins with a 
study of its geography, for without such a study it 
is impossible to understand the life of the people. 
The ways in which Georgians make their living, their 
political opinions and social and educational condi- 
tions are largely the results of the situation and 
climate of the state. An illustration of the powerful 
influence of physical conditions is afforded by the 
early experience of our people on the seacoast. The 
founders of the colony prohibited the holding of 
slaves, because it was intended that the settlers should 
produce wine and silk, and in these light employ- 
ments slaves would not be needed. But climatic con- 
ditions were such that these industries did not suc- 
ceed. Georgians turned their attention to rice grow- 
ing, and as the coast was swampy and malarious, it 
seemed necessary to allow the introduction of slaves. 
The whole subsequent history of Georgia was affected 

5 



6 History of Georgia 

by this change from a free labor system to the use of 
slaves. Instances could be mutiplied, but this illus- 
tration is sufficient to show the student how neces- 
sary it is to know something of the climate and soils 
of a state, if he would rightly understand her history. 

Area and Boundaries 

With an area of 59,475 square miles, Georgia ranks 
twentieth in size among the states of the Union. 
No other state east of the Mississippi has so great 
an area. Georgia is one of the South Atlantic States, 
lying between 30° 31' 39'' and 35° North latitude, the 
length of the state being about 320 miles; and 81° 
and 85° 53' 38'' longitude, west from Greenwich, 
the greatest width of the state being about 254 miles. 
Georgia was once very much larger than she now is, 
but, because of circumstances later to be mentioned, 
part of her territory was lost. The present bound- 
aries are North Carolina and Tennessee on the north ; 
the Savannah River and the Ocean on the east; 
Florida on the south; the Chattahoochee River and 
Alabama on the west. 

The Mountains of North Georgia 

If the entire state could be viewed from some out- 
side point, say from a ship off Tybee, it would present 
the appearance of a vast inclined plane, with the 
highest points on the North Carolina-Tennessee 
border and the lowest at the seaboard. The northern 
part of the state is crossed by the Appalachian sys- 



History of Georgia 



LEGEND 
Mountains 

Piedmont Plateau 
Coastal Plain 



FALL LINE 




Physical Map of Georgia. 
Reprod. from Merrill, F. A., "Geography of the Soils of Georgia." 

tern of mountains, extending from New Hampshire 
to Alabama. In Virginia, North Carolina and 
Georgia, the Appalachians appear as two chains with 
a wide valley between. The western chain is known 
as the Alleghenies. This chain crosses the extreme 



8 History of Georgia 

northwestern corner of Georgia. The mountains are 
broad-topped and are not of great height, Lookout 
Mountain being the highest, about 2400 feet above 
sea level. The coal mines of Georgia are here 
located, in Dade and Walker Counties. The Appa- 
lachian Valley separates the Alleghenies from the 
Blue Ridge, which covers northeast Georgia. The 




Waterfall in North Georgia. 

Blue Ridge mountains, with their irregular, sharp- 
pointed peaks attain a much greater elevation than 
the Alleghenies. The highest peaks are Sitting Bull, 
5,046 feet above sea level, and Enota, 4,798 feet. 
Both of these peaks are in Towns County. The Blue 
Ridge section is noted for its beautiful valleys, swift 
streams and picturesque waterfalls. 



History of Georgia 9 

The Piedmont Plateau 

Below the mountains comes a rolling, broken and 
hilly country known as the Piedmont Plateau. The 
word "Piedmont" means foothills. The mountains 
do not cease abruptly, but gradually shelve off as one 
approaches Middle Georgia. The Piedmont section 
extends to a line connecting Augusta and Columbus, 
and passing through Macon. The elevation varies 
from 1500 feet above sea level to 300 feet at the 
southern limit of the region. The soil is a mixture 
of sandy land and red clay. It is naturally very fer- 
tile, but on account of the rolling character of the 
country, it easily washes away. This part of Georgia 
is more densely settled than any other section; it has 
been the most important agricultural region; and is 
now leading the other sections in the development of 
manufacturing. 

The Fall Line 

The dominance or Piedmont Georgia in manufac- 
turing is due to her abundant supply of water power. 
The presence of mountains in North Georgia and the 
shelving nature of the land south of the mountains 
determine the course of the rivers. Practically all 
the important streams of the state rise in the moun- 
tains or foothills and flow southward, seeking the 
Gulf of Mexico or the Ocean. So long as the rivers 
are running between mountain ridges or tumbling 
among the foothills, the streams are rapid and full of 



10 



History of Georgia 



shoals and waterfalls. The power generated by the 
swiftly flowing streams is used to turn the machinery 
of cotton mills and other manufacturing plants. The 
rivers change their character, however, when they 
leave the Piedmont and break into the Coastal Plain. 




Shipping Lumber at Savannah. 



The line connecting the points on the several rivers 
at which they leave the Piedmont is known as the Fall 
Line. Below these points the streams are broad and 
deep, and flow slowly. Augusta, Milledgeville, Ma- 
con and Columbus are on the fall line. These towns 



History of Georgia 11 

were built where they are, not by accident, but by 
design. Going northward from the Atlantic or the 
Gulf, boats find smooth water to these towns, but 
beyond, travel and transportation must leave the 
rivers, because the rapids and falls make them im- 
passable. Large towns, therefore, grew up at the 
limit of navigation. From them wagon roads radi- 
ated into the surrounding country; the farmers 
hauled their cotton and other products to the towns; 
flatboats, and, later, steamboats were used to convey 
the products to the ports and to carry supplies up- 
stream to the market towns. 

The Coastal Plain 

Below the Piedmont section lies the great coastal 
plain of Georgia, covering some 35,000 square miles, 
more than half the total area of the state. While 
this region is on the whole level and fiat, it is not by 
any means so monotonous as many have supposed. 
The elevation varies from 100 to 350 feet above sea 
level, though hills occur as high as 700 feet. There 
is a wide variety of soils, but for the most part it is 
sandy with a clay foundation. This section was for- 
merly covered with pine forests, though they are now 
rapidly disappearing, the soil being appropriated 
to agriculture. The forests are the basis of the lum- 
ber and turpentine industries of the State. A char- 
acteristic feature of the plain is the wiregrass which, 
carpets the earth in south central and southeast Geor- 



12 History of Georgia 

gia. The Coastal Plain was until recently sparsely 
populated, but now that improved methods of tillage 
and the use of commercial fertilizers are making the 
cultivation of the sandy soils profitable, a large popu- 
lation is being attracted, and South Georgia prom- 
ises to rival the Piedmont as an agricultural region. 

The Seacoast 

Georgia has a sea frontage of 126 miles. The coast 
is not mountainous and rugged as is the case in New 
England, but is almost flat. The indentations of the 
coast at the mouths of the rivers and the sounds be- 
tween the mainland and the islands that fringe the 
coast provide excellent harbors. Parts of the coast 
are swampy and malarious. The climate has not 
proved attractive to white people and the population 
is, therefore, small, except in Chatham County, con- 
taining the city of Savannah.^ Rice production was 
formerly the leading agricultural interest of the sea- 
board counties, but periodical freshets and storms, 
labor troubles, and the competition of the rice fields 
of the West, have crippled the industry. 

Climate 

Owing to the great length of the State and the for- 
tunate physiographic variations, eight of the nine cli- 
mate belts of the United States are represented in 

^ Now that modern science has taught us how to conquer 
malaria, we may expect ere long a large white population on the 
coast. 



History of Georgia 



13 



Georgia, though it is only at the top of the mountains 
that the lowest of these temperature conditions 
occurs. The mean annual temperature of the Pied- 
mont Plateau is between 60° and 65° Fahrenheit, 
while below the fall line the mean annual tempera- 
ture is between 65° and 70°. For the whole State, the 
mean July temperature is 81.8°. With this unusual 




Palmetto Grove on the Georgia Coast. 



climate, varying from the temperate to the sub- 
tropical, and with soils of w^idely different character- 
istics, it is possible to produce in Georgia almost any 
sort of crop. Her agricultural interests are, there- 
fore, quite varied, ranging from apples in the moun- 
tains to cotton and corn in the middle regions and 
sugar and rice in the southern section. Only three 



14 History of Georgia 

States in the Union surpass Georgia in the total value 
of agricultural products. 

Additional Reading: 

Merrill, F. R., Geography of the Soils of Georgia. Published 
by the Georgia Club of the State Normal School, Athens, Ga. 
Copies may be had on application. 



CHAPTER II 

THE ABORIGINES OF GEORGIA 

The Name "Indian" 

The voyages which led to the discovery of America 
were undertaken for the purpose of finding a western 
route to the East Indies, and when the islands now 
known as the West Indies were reached, the dis- 
coverers thought they had succeeded in their 
endeavor. The native people, or aborigines, were, 
therefore, called ''Indians," and the name, oddly 
enough, became permanently attached to them. These 
natives were scattered over the entire continent of 
North America, from the frozen North to Florida 
and from the Atlantic to the Pacific. The total popu- 
lation was very small, not more than half a million 
for the whole continent north of Mexico. East of 
the Mississippi it has been estimated that there were 
about 200,000 Indians at the time of the discovery of 
the New World. There are at the present time about 
400,000 Indians in North America. 

The Southeastern Indians 

There were four principal nations or tribes of 
Indians in the southeastern part of what is now the 

15 



16 



History of Georgia 




Original Lands of Cherokees and Creeks. 



History of Georgia 17 

United States, namely, the Cherokees, Creeks, 
Chickasaws and Choctaws. Of these only the 
Cherokees and Creeks played an important part in 
the history of Georgia. The Cherokees were the 
most civilized and one of the most powerful of all 
the American Indian nations. Their original terri- 
tories embraced all of the states of Kentucky and 
Tennessee, the western parts of West Virginia, 
Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina, and 
the northern portions of Georgia and Alabama. 
Their southern boundary in Georgia was approxi- 
mately a line drawn from Elberton to Cedartown. 

The Creeks or Muscogees were a confederacy of 
numerous tribes, occupying all of Georgia south of 
the Cherokees, central and eastern Alabama and 
Florida. In Georgia they were known as Lower 
Creeks; in Alabama, Upper Creeks, while in Florida 
they were called Seminoles. In later chapters the 
story of the gradual acquisition of the Indian lands 
by Georgia will be told. We are at present con- 
cerned only with the life and customs of the natives 
in their primitive condition. 

Indian Characteristics 

The Indians were of a dark reddish color, strong, 
well proportioned, active, nimble footed, and capable 
of enduring great physical suffering. Their hair was 
lank, dark and coarse, and their eyes small, sharp 
and black. The accounts of white men who lived 



18 History of Georgia 

among them as traders and government agents differ 
as to their mental traits. By some they are pictured 
as cunning, deceitful, revengeful and dishonest; 
others thought them honest, hospitable to strangers, 
kind hearted and industrious. The last Royal 
Governor of Georgia, Sir James Wright, wrote of 
the Creeks as ^'a most base treacherous people and in 
whom you can have no confidence or dependence." 
The Cherokees he had found "much more civilized 
and better disposed." 

Indian Dress 

General Oglethorpe, the founder of Georgia, left 
a description of the Indian mode of dress, of which 
the following is an abridgment. The men wo^e a 
sort of trunks, covering the middle portion of t^e 
body, the women a short skirt, reaching to the knees. 
In winter both sexes wore a mantle about two yards 
square, ''which they wrap round their bodies as the 
Romans did their toga." These mantles were some- 
times of European make, bought from traders; some- 
times of native dressed skins. To complete the cos- 
tume, the Indians wore sandals or moccasins made 
of leather. The aborigines were skillful in prepar- 
ing skins for clothing and also knew how to w^eave 
blankets and rugs. They had a curious habit of 
painting their bodies. Oglethorpe mentions seeing 
Indians painted red, TdIuc, yellow, and black. Various 



History of Georgia 19 

sorts of ornaments were worn, such as feathers in the 
hair, necklaces of beads, and earrings. 

The Indian Village 

The Indians usually lived in village communities. 
Their houses were often framed structures and were 
sometimes whitewashed inside and out. In addition 
to his dwelling, each head of a family had a corn 
house, a poultry house and a hot house. The hot 
house was built of heavy timber and was plastered 
with mud. There were no openings, except a low 
door. When this was closed, the structure was prac- 
tically air tight and cold proof. Here the Indians 
slept in winter, lying around a fire which was kept 
constantly burning. How they endured the smoke 
is a mystery. 

Near the center of the village was a public square, 
in which were located the ^^Great House" and the 
"Council House." The former consisted of four 
single-storied houses enclosing a court. Public meet- 
ings, feasts and dances occurred there. The Council 
House was erected at a corner of the square. It was 
conical in shape and from twenty-five to thirty feet 
in diameter. This building was the meeting place 
of the "mico" and his council. 

Political Arrangements 

The small number of Indians belonging to any 
one tribe or nation and the fact that their settlements 



20 History of Georgia 

were scattered over a wide territory made any sort 
of government over the whole tribe impossible, even 
if the Indians had felt the need of organized govern- 
ment. While the aborigines scattered over many 
thousands of square miles might call themselves 
Cherokees or Creeks, there was only a very slight 
bond between the villages. Each village was in fact 
a little nation in itself. If the Creeks desired to go 
to war, each town decided independently whether or 
not it would take the war path. There were at the 
close of the eighteenth century thirty-eight Creek 
towns. A government agent who lived among them 
at that time wrote that they were never unanimously 
in favor of any war, so that the nation might be at 
war with the Cherokees or Chickasaws and half of 
the villages send no warriors. The government of 
each village was vested in a chief, known as the mico, 
a war chief, and a council. The mico was chosen by 
the warriors of the village from a certain clan or 
family, and held his office for life. His opinion was 
of great weight in determining the policy of the 
town. Society was, however, democratic. Outside 
the council room, the mico was in no way set apart 
from his fellow citizens. The war-chief owed his 
position to his renown in battle. He led in all mili- 
tary excursions and presided over the council in the 
absence of the mico. The council was composed 
of the older warriors of the village. 



History of Georgia 21 

Tribal Wars 

The various tribes of Indians were seldom at 
peace with one another for long periods. Quarrels 
over hunting grounds appear to have been a fruit- 
ful cause of war. The Indian method of warfare 
was quite unlike that of civilized peoples. There 
was no formal declaration of war, no marching forth 
in battle array. Usually a small party of from twenty 
to forty would steal cautiously upon the enemy and 
attack them by night or lie in ambush for returning 
hunting parties. They often resorted to tricks to 
conceal their presence and to disguise their numbers, 
such as wearing the hoofs of buffaloes or marching in 
single file, each man stepping in the track made by 
the warrior just ahead. When lying in ambush, they 
would communicate with one another by imitating 
the calls of wild birds or beasts. The slain in battle 
were always scalped and often dismembered. A 
warrior's standing in his tribe depended on the num- 
ber of scalps he took. Captives were treated with 
the utmost cruelty, burning at the stake being the 
usual form of torture. In this sport the women and 
children joined with great zest. The victim stoically 
bore the torment, pride preventing his showing any 
sign of suffering. 

Religion 

The Indians believed in the immortality of the 
soul and in future rewards or punishments for their 



22 History of Georgia 

lives on earth. They worshipped the sun as the 
giver of life, light and heat. They were very super- 
stitious, believing in evil spirits, which they were 
accustomed to appease by incantations and charms 
of one sort and another. The Southern Indians did 
not worship idols. The High-Priest was an im- 
portant personage in each village. He was believed 
to hold personal communion with the invisible spirits 
and was regarded as a mediator between them and 
the red men. The warrior's idea of heaven was a 
limitless hunting ground, and he was invariably 
buried with bow, arrows and spear, that he might 
not be without weapons in the other world. 

Agriculture 

The earliest account we have of the Southern 
Indians is found in the notes kept by one of de Soto's 
companions, in 1539, during his noted exploration of 
this region.^ At that time the Georgia Indians were 
living in villages, had wooden houses, and while 
depending principally on the chase for food, had 

^ Hernando de Soto, the Spanish explorer, came to Florida in 
1539- Marching northward, the adventurer led his army into 
what is now Georgia. The Spaniards crossed the Ocmulgee, 
Oconee and Ogeechee Rivers and reached the bank of the Savan- 
nah. They followed the Savannah as far north as the moun- 
tains, where they turned sharply to the west. Skirting the moun- 
tains, de Soto's party reached the Coosa River and followed its 
valley into Alabama. The explorers finally reached the Mis- 
sissippi River in 1541. De Soto died shortly afterward and was 
buried in the great river. 



History of Georgia 



23 





Indian Implements. 

I Piecing Instrument Made of a Deer's Tibia. 

2 and 4 Arrow Heads. 3 Mortar for Crushing Corn. 5 Axe. 

Reproduced by permission from Jones, C. C, "Antiquities of the Southern 

Indians" (Appleton). 



24 History of Georgia 

passed the nomadic stage and looked to agriculture 
for part of their sustenance. DeSoto's diarist records 
that the savages grew corn, beans and pumpkins, 
preserved plums by drying them, made oil from 
bear's fat and from walnuts, and, of course, used the 
native fruits, such as the strawberry. Most of the 
accounts of Indian life were written in the eighteenth 
century. Agriculture had by that time become the 
principal means of livelihood of the Cherokees and 
Creeks, game having become scarce. Their towns 
were commonly located on streams, because there the 
land was most fertile. Each dwelling had a garden, 
in which were planted peas, beans and early ripening- 
corn. The larger fields were devoted exclusively to 
corn production. When the proper season arrived, 
certain days were set apart for planting, and all the 
able-bodied inhabitants of the town turned out and 
worked on the cooperative plan. In some towns the 
women did all this work; in others, the men assisted. 
The implement in ordinary use was a hoe, consisting 
of a fish bone or flat stone fixed upon a wooden handle. 
Though the planting and cultivating were done 
cooperatively, hedges divided the fields into indi- 
^^dual holdings and each warrior gathered the crop 
from his own part of the field. 

Manufacturing 

The activity of English and French traders in sup- 
plying the Indians with cloth, beads, paint and a 



History of Georgia 25 

wide variety of articles of iron, tended to check 
the progress of the natives in manufacturing. 
They were, however, skillful workers in stone. No 
steel or iron implements were used until the white 
man came, but in spite of this hindrance the Indians 
made beautiful arrowheads, spearheads, stone pipes, 
trumpets and mortars for grinding corn. Another 
accomplishment was the art of making earthenware 
of many designs. Articles for personal adornment 
were made from shells. Spinning and weaving, the 
dressing of skins and the art of dyeing were in com- 
mon use among Cherokees and Creeks. 

Marriage Customs 

The marriage customs of the aborigines varied 
from tribe to tribe. Among the Creeks the matches 
were always made by the female relatives of the inter- 
ested persons. Having decided on a girl, the young 
buck sent his aunts, cousins and sisters to consult with 
the women of the girl's family. If the overtures 
met with favor, the prospective bridegroom built a 
cabin, planted and gathered a crop, went on the 
hunt and brought back meat, and then received the 
maiden into his hut. There was nothing sacred about 
the marriage, it was not sanctioned by a priest, and 
could be dissolved at the desire of either the man 
or the woman. If a separation occurred, the children 
became the property of the mother. The Cherokees 



26 History of Georgia 

practiced monogamy, but the Creeks had as many 
wives as they could support. 

Funeral Customs 

The Creeks buried their dead in a pit under the 
cabin of the deceased. The pit was about four feet 
square, and the body was placed in a sitting posi- 
tion. Gun, tomahawk and pipe were deposited with 
the corpse. Immediately on the death of a Cherokee 
his body was washed, anointed and placed in front 
of his lodge. After a period of mourning, the body 
was carried three times around the hut, and then 
buried in a pit under the floor. The Choctaws placed 
the dead body on a scaffold eighteen or twenty feet 
above the ground. When only the skeleton 
remained, it was taken down and placed in a bone 
house. After a considerable number of skeletons had 
accumulated, a funeral ceremony was performed and 
the bones interred together. Cremation was practiced 
among some tribes. Most of the tribes seem to have 
buried with the dead warrior his weapons and other 
highly prized possessions, and vessels containing 
food. This practice indicates the Indians' belief in a 
future existence. The food was intended to sustain 
him during the passage from this world to the next. 

Feasts 

The Cherokees and Creeks celebrated many feasts, 
of which the most important was the busk, or harvest 



History of Georgia 27 

feast. The feast was preceded by a period of purifi- 
cation. Houses and streets were thoroughly cleansed, 
and a great bonfire made of garbage, old clothes, 
cooking utensils and whatever food happened to be 
on hand. A three days' fast was decreed, and all 
criminals who had fled from justice might return 
and be forgiven, except murderers. On the morning 
of the first day after the period of fasting the high 
priest made a new fire by rubbing sticks together, 
new corn was brought from the fields and the feast 
began. 

Indian Mounds or Tumuli 

The valleys, river banks and islands of the coast 
of Georgia were once dotted with hundreds of Indian 
mounds. Numbers of them still stand, the only 
monuments we have of the former inhabitants of 
our land. These mounds vary in size from the large 
one in Bartow County, which is sixty-five feet high 
and two hundred and twenty-five feet in diameter at 
the top, to the small individual burial mound. 
Archaeologists believe that the mounds were erected 
by a people who lived in Georgia before the Indians 
came. There are several reasons for this opinion. 
The larger mounds were erected with the expendi- 
ture of enormous amounts of labor, more than the 
Indians of those days could possibly have supplied, as 
their number was too small. Students of the subject 
think that prior to the coming of the Indians a much 



28 History of Georgia 

more numerous race lived in our country. Another 
reason for this view is that the Indians had no idea 
when or why the tumuli were built. They used the 
mounds as towers to watch for expected enemies, 
and as burial grounds, and sometimes stockaded them 
for service as forts; but the form of some of the 
great mounds suggests that they were intended as 






Indian Mound on Tumlin Plantation, Bartow County. 
Photograph furnislied by Mr. Robert Milan, Cartersville, Ga. 

temples of worship, and it may be that some ancient 
people, of whom we have no knowledge, used the 
tumuli for the performance of religious rites. Still 
another point in favor of this view as to the ancient 
character of the mounds is that observers of the 
Indians agree that they were not idolatrous, whereas 
in the tumuli many idols have been found. 

Use of Tobacco 

The Indians originated the practice of tobacco 
smoking. Europeans at first thought tobacco was 




Indian Pipes. 
Reprod. from Jones, C. C, "Antiquities of the Southern Indians." 



30 nUtory of Georgia 

used for medicinal purposes, being unable to under- 
stand how pleasure could be derived from a practice 
which nauseated the white men who attempted it. 
The savages are said to have regarded tobacco as 
the special gift of the Great Spirit for their enjoy- 
ment. The pipe was the constant companion of the 
red man, his great solace and comfort. The habit 
of smoking seems to have been wellnigh universal 
among them. 

In the manufacture of pipes the Indians were very 
skillful. Thousands of them have been dug out of 
mounds and are preserved in various museums. The 
bowl is often quite as smooth and as highly polished 
as any used by modern smokers. Antiquarians 
divide the pipes into three classes, idol pipes, calu- 
mets and individual pipes. The idol pipes are so 
named because they are cut in the shape of some 
animal or to represent the human figure. Such pipes 
are found only in the ancient tumuli, and are con- 
sidered an indication of the extreme antiquity of the 
mounds, since the Indian was not an idolater. 

The calumet was the peace pipe. This was large 
and heavy, with a bowl sometimes the size of a toa- 
cup. The calumet was the property of the whole 
tribe, and was smoked only on formal occasions, 
such as meetings to conclude alliances or to make 
treaties. Smoking the calumet was a ceremony of 
great dignity. The taking of a whiff of the calumet 
pledged the smoker's honor to abide by the treaty. 



History of Georgia 31 

The third class of pipes includes all the varieties 
of pipes for individual use. The bowls were made of 
stone or clay, a reed serving as a stem. Some of 
the bowls are no larger than a thimble, others hold 
an ounce of tobacco. 

Summary 

The name ''Indian'^ was given to the aborigines 
of America by the Spanish explorers. The most im- 
portant tribes that lived in Georgia were the Chero- 
kees and Creeks, the former occupying North 
Georgia, the latter Middle and South Georgia. The 
Indians were not a roving, nomadic people, but lived 
in fixed homes, grouped in village communities. 
Their homes were often well constructed of wood. 
In each of these villages there were local rulers^ 
chosen for special qualities of wisdom or physical 
prowess. There was no central government over all 
the red men belonging to a tribe. The Indians were 
very cruel to enemies captured in war, usually burn- 
ing them at the stake. They believed in a future exist- 
ence after death and buried their dead with bow and 
arrow, or at a later time, with gun and ammunition. 
Corn, peas, beans and other foodstuffs were regularly 
planted and cultivated. The Indians were skillful 
in spinning, weaving and dyeing cloth, in pottery 
making, and in carving and polishing stones. It is 
thought that the tumuli, or mounds, were not built 
by the Indians who inhabited the land when the 



32 History of Georgia 

white men came, but that these structures were 
erected by some earlier and more numerous race, 
who were exterminated or driven away by the Indians. 
The most striking contributions of the Indians to 
modern civilization are the Indian maize, or corn, 
and the tobacco plant. 

Additional Reading: 

De Soto's March Throii<2;h Georgia: Joel Chandler Harris, 
Stories of Georgia, 7-19 (American Book Co.)- 



CHAPTER III 

THE ENGLISH BACKGROUND OF GEORGIA 

HISTORY 

Eighteenth Century England 

Some acquaintance with English history in the 
eighteenth century will help the student to under- 
stand why a new colony was established in America. 
People do not voluntarily forsake their native coun- 
try to begin life anew in a strange land unless urged 
by powerful motives. For fifty years preceding the 
founding of Georgia civil commotions and foreign 
wars had so broken into the ordinary life of the Eng- 
lish people that society was somewhat demoralized. 
England had recently changed her line of sovereigns 
from the Stuart family to the German house of Han- 
over, and the first two kings of this line, George I 
and George II, were more German than English, 
George I, in fact, never learning to speak English. 
Both these kings were stupid, coarse, immoral 
spendthrifts. There were no influences of a refining 
character at their court, and, of course, the royal 
example afifected all classes of society. 

Political Corruption 

It was a time of great political dishonesty. The 
right to sit in Parliament was openly bought and 



34 History of Georgia 

sold, and votes had a market value like other com- 
modities. The prime minister, Robert Walpole, kept 
himself in power by bribing people to support him, 
using money from the national treasury for this 
purpose. 

Religious Influences 

The religious life of the people was at a low ebb. 
The established church had so far lost sight of its true 
mission that a great movement of reform headed by 
the Wesleys was begun, resulting at a later time in 
the founding of a new sect, the Methodist Church. 

An Era of Speculation 

In the realm of business, the spirit of the age 
showed itself in a mania for gambling and specula- 
tion. It was a time of great commercial expansion; 
people were in a hurry to get rich, and hence the air 
was full of speculative schemes. People were easily 
victimized by swindlers. Shares were eagerly bought 
in a company to change iron into gold and silver; 
in a scheme to discover perpetual motion; to make 
salt water fresh, and one set of men were bold enough 
to advertise shares in a plan "the nature of which 
is to be revealed hereafter." These companies were 
popularly known as "bubbles," and more than a 
hundred were organized in the first quarter of the 
century. Even the English government became in- 
volved in one of these companies, known as the South 



History of Georgia 35 

Sea Company. This company was organized in 171 1 
to carry on trade with Spanish America. The direc- 
tors offered to assume $150,000,000 of England's 
national debt and pay the bondholders in stock of 
the company. The government accepted the proposi- 
tion and used its influence to assure the public of the 
soundness of the investment. South Sea shares at 
once rose from a hundred pounds to a thousand 
pounds each. In a short time the "bubble burst," the 
shares fell and many thousands of investors were 
ruined. This was the greatest of all the speculative 
enterprises. With its failure scores of smaller com- 
panies went down and universal panic and distress 
followed. 

Extravagant Social Life 

People were very fond of ostentatious display. 
Middle class people lived beyond their means, 
spending everything they made for dress and expen- 
sive living. We are told that a dinner party often 
lasted seven hours and that people spent more on 
wine than on a son's education. This sort of 
extravagance, together with high prices and heavy 
taxation due to the wars, resulted in financial diffi- 
culties of a serious nature. 

Gin Drinking 

The bad tendencies of the time are well illustrated 
by the enormous increase in the consumption of in- 



36 History of Georgia 

toxicants. In 1689 trade relations between England 
and France had been discontinued. Before that 
time drinking in England was largely confined to 
the wealthy classes who could afford the expensive 
French wines. But after 1689 Englishmen began to 
manufacture a cheap drink called '^gin." The crav- 
ing for drink is said to have "spread like a 
pestilence throughout the country." The statistics 
of the manufacture of intoxicants bear out the asser- 
tion. In 1684 only 527,000 gallons of spirits were 
distilled in England; in 1714 the figures had risen 
to 2,000,000 gallons; in 1727 to 3,601,000; in 1733 to 
5,394,000, and in 1742 to 7,000,000 gallons. Most 
of this was gin, and its use among the lower classes 
became a great evil. It is said that retailers of gin 
hung out signs to the effect that one could be made 
drunk for a pennyworth of gin, dead drunk for two 
pence, and should have straw to sleep on for nothing. 
Naturally crime and immorality increased with the 
consumption of gin. 

Prisons for Debt 

The English law two centuries ago allowed a 
creditor to have a debtor arrested and imprisoned 
until payment was made. In many instances such 
imprisonment proved permanent, as the unfortunates 
so confined could make nothing while in jail, and 
their friends and relatives were often unwilling or 
unable to help them. Dickens' novel, "Little Dor- 



History of Georgia 37 

rit," is the story of a prisoner for debt. Often highly 
respectable persons were thrown into noisome prisons 
with criminals of the lowest type and in surround- 
ings of incredible filth. The control of these prisons 
was not retained by the government, but was put 
up for sale to the highest bidder, sometimes bring- 
ing as high a price as twenty-five thousand dollars. 
As nearly always happens when the element of profit 
is allowed to enter such matters, the jailers maltreated 
the prisoners, exacting heavy fees for their main- 
tenance, and, as there was no government supervi- 
sion, casting those who could not pay into dungeons 
without ventilation, where death frequently followed 
neglect. 

Harsh Criminal Laws 

Men at that time were not easily moved by the 
sufferings of others. The laws were remarkable for 
the total absence of measures tending to relieve dis- 
tress. Criminal laws were very harsh, death being 
the penalty for about one hundred and sixty distinct 
offenses during George the First's reign. Such 
trivial matters as the stealing of an article worth one 
shilling, the sending of threatening letters, illegal 
cutting down of trees, and the like, were punishable 
by death. An eminent Englishman writing in the 
middle of the eighteenth century declared that ''Our 
punishments are the mildest in the known world. It 
is generally allowed that our laws are merciful, just 



38 History of Georgia 

and perfectly agreeable to the genius of this nation." 
When we reflect that at the present time there are 
many people who would abolish the death penalty 
for even the most serious crimes, we can see how 
greatly the opinion of the world has changed on the 
subject of punishment. The harsh laws in England 
did not check crime, but caused it to increase, as 
criminals would commit serious crimes to conceal 
minor offenses. It is the certainty of punishment, not 
its severity, that checks crime. 

Investigation of Prisons for Debt 

So great became the abuse of the prison system 

that in 1729 the matter attracted the attention of 

Parliament, and in that year an act for clearing the 

debtors' prisons was passed. It is said that 97,248 

^persons claimed the benefit of the measure. |A 

r parliamentary investigation into the conditions of the 

1 prisons was made on the motion of James Edward 

V Oglethorpe. 

Scheme to Found a New Colony 

So gruesome were the facts brought to light by the 
investigating committee that Oglethorpe began to 
consider the possibility of doing something to give 
the released prisoners for debt a new start in life. The 
most practicable and permanent relief seemed to be 
the colonizing of these people in America. It was 
natural that this idea should have occurred to Ogle- 



History of Georgia 39 

thorpe, because Englishmen had grown accustomed 
to see their fellow countrymen leave for the new 
world, in search of political and religious liberty. 
Oglethorpe and other gentlemen whom he had inter- 
ested in the plan therefore appealed to King George 
II, and received a grant of certain lands in America 
in the lower part of the colony of South Carolina, 
to be erected into the colony of Georgia. 

James Edward Oglethorpe 

The trait of character that distinguished Ogle- 
thorpe from Englishmen of his time was that in a 
notoriously corrupt and selfish age he sympathized 
with the sufferings of the unfortunate. He has been 
called the '^father of philanthropy." Concerned with 
the troubles of others in an age when altruism was 
unknown, leaving England and a life of ease and 
affluence to spend several years in a strange, un- 
pleasant environment, Oglethorpe challenges our 
unbounded admiration. The public men of his time 
knew that English life was honeycombed with vice 
and suffering, but they did not grasp the idea that the 
State could and should do something to remedy the 
evils. The early history of Georgia has a unique 
interest in that it was the first instance of a colony's 
being established by a government to relieve pauper- 
ism. Any human effort which is undertaken on 
purely unselfish grounds commands respect and we 
instinctively honor the man who was capable of 



40 



History of Georgia 




James Edward Oglethorpe. 
From an engravmg lent by Mr. W. J. DeRenne. 

devoting his life to such a project. It took a man of 
remarkable strength of purpose to invade a w^ilder- 
ness w^ith a company of broken-down traders and 
professional men and expect to make it a garden spot. 
Little is known of Oglethorpe's early life. He 
was born in 1689. He entered Oxford, but left at 



History of Georgia 41 

fifteen years of age to become a soldier under Prince 
Eugene of Savoy in the War of the Spanish Succes- 
sion. In 1714 he was made a captain-lieutenant in 
Queen Anne's Life Guards. Entering Parliament 
in 1722, he was a somewhat undistinguished member 
of that body until the prison investigation began. 

Summary 

The early eighteenth century was a period in which 
English society was in an unsettled condition. A 
long period of wars abroad and civil troubles at 
home, the disorganized state of the business world 
and the financial difficulties incident to extravagant 
living and high prices, made it a favorable time to 
launch a new colony. The immediate occasion of 
the plan to create the colony of Georgia was the 
desire to relieve unfortunate prisoners for debt. The 
leader of the enterprise was a member of Parliament, 
named James Edward Oglethorpe, who had made a 
reputation as a soldier in the foreign wars 

Additional Reading: 

Oglethorpe: Smith, C. H,, History of Georgia, Chap. I (Ginn 
& Co.). Prisons for Debt: Dickens, Little Dorrit, Chap. VI. 



CHAPTER IV 

THE BEGINNINGS OF THE COLONY, 1 732-1 740 ^ 

The Charter 

King George II signed the Charter of the Colony 
of Georgia on June 9, 1732. The name ^'Georgia" 
was adopted in honor of the reigning monarch. The 
twenty men who petitioned for the land grant were 
styled ^'Trustees for Establishing the Colony of 
Georgia in America." They were empowered to 
ordain laws and regulations for the government of the 
colony, to appoint a governor, establish courts, trans- 
port settlers, and distribute the land to immigrants. 
The Trust was to last twenty-one years, and no salary 
or other financial profit was to be enjoyed by mem- 
bers of the Trust. 

Purposes of the Colony 

From the Charter and from advertisements pub- 
lished by the Trustees we learn that there were 
several ends to be secured in founding the colony, 
in addition to the assistance of the distressed prisoners 
for debt. Georgia was to be a sort of buffer colony 

^ Jones, C. C., History of Georgia. This is the most detailed 
and accurate history of the period of the settlement. 

42 



History of Georgia 



43 




Eastern North America in 1732. 



for the protection of South Carolina from the Indians 
and Spanish. The accompanying map shows that at 



44 History of Georgia 

the time of the founding of Georgia the land now 
constituting the state of Florida was owned by the 
Spanish, and that, furthermore, the Spanish claimed 
the country as far north as the Edisto River in South 
Carolina. The French held the country about the 
Mississippi River and Mobile Bay, and their claims 
extended as far east as the sources of the Savannah 
River. All the territory west of the Savannah was, 
therefore, in dispute between the three powers, and 
English, French and Spanish traders competed for 
the profitable Indian trade. The Spanish were con- 
stantly threatening South Carolina, encouraging 
slave insurrections and harboring runaway slaves, 
thus preventing the peaceful development of that 
colony. The danger of slave insurrection in South 
Carolina was great. In an address to the Crown in 
1734 the Assembly of that colony said: "We are sub- 
jected to many intestine dangers from the great num- 
ber of negroes among us, who amount at least to 
22,000 persons, and are three to one of all your 
majesty's white subjects in this province." As will 
later appear, the peculiar method of land tenure in 
Georgia and the prohibition of slavery were in part 
the result of the desire of the founders to make 
Georgia a strong military colony. The third end to 
be attained was commercial profit. It was believed 
that a colony located to the south of Carolina would 
produce valuable wines and silk and thus relieve 
England of the necessity of purchasing these com- 



History of Georgia 45 

modities from other nations. Still another purpose 
of the founders was to christianize the Indians. Mis- 
sionaries were sent out from England for this work, 
though very little was accomplished. 

The Original Land Grant 

The territory granted by the charter was that part 
of South Carolina lying between the Savannah and 
Altamaha Rivers, and westward from their sources 
to the '^South Seas." The knowledge of the geog- 
raphy of the continent was still meagre. No one 
knew just how far westward lay the Pacific Ocean, 
and the expression ''South Seas" meant simply indefi- 
nitely westward. 

Religion 

Freedom in the matter of religious worship was 
offered to all except Catholics. This discrimination 
against Catholics was due to historical causes. In 
1688 the Catholic monarch, James II, was expelled 
from England, and it was made the law of the land 
that no Catholic should ever sit on the throne. Catho- 
lics were also excluded from holding any civil or 
military office or from sitting in Parliament. For 
many years the exiled family of Stuart schemed to 
regain the lost throne, usually with the assistance of 
a powerful party in England and with the sympathy 
of Catholic France. Only seventeen years before 
the granting of the charter of Georgia there had been 



46 



History of Georgia 




Charter Boundaries of Georgia. 



a formidable rising of the Catholics in favor of the 
Stuart Pretender. So it was natural that English- 



History of Georgia 47 

men did not care to harbor within the new colony 
persons whom they regarded as hostile to the Eng- 
lish throne and religion. 

Selection of the First Emigrants 

Equipped with this charter, giving them full rights 
to organize a colony, the Trustees began to hold 
meetings in July, 1732. Many kind-hearted persons 
became interested in the scheme. Some of them went 
about raising subscriptions for the colony; others 
entered their names for subscriptions in a book placed 
at the Bank of England for that purpose. The month 
of September was spent in looking into the cases of 
men who had asked to be sent out as colonists. The 
Trustees did their best to select only such men as 
were honest, deserving and unfortunate. Although 
those chosen were undoubtedly weak members of 
society, men who had failed to maintain themselves, 
it would be very far from the truth to suppose that 
they were degenerates, jail-birds or criminals in the 
usual meaning of those words. The only crime which 
they had committed was that of improvidence. 

By the end of October one hundred and fourteen 
persons, men, women and children, had been chosen. 
A small sailboat named The Ann, of two hundred 
tons burden, was obtained for the voyage, and on 
November i6th, 1732, the party sailed. Without 
serious mishap they reached Charleston, S. C, on 
January 13th, 1733, where the Carolinians extended 



48 History of Georgia 

them a cordial welcome. Proceeding southward, the 
settlers, on February 12th, reached the spot selected 
by Oglethorpe for planting the colony. 

Town of Savannah Begun 

The site chosen was on a bluff overlooking the 
Savannah River and eighteen miles from its mouth. 
A tribe of Indians known as Yamacraws lived there. 
Oglethorpe and his little band began to fell trees and 
build houses, all for a while living in tents. A pub- 
lic garden, designed as a nursery, was laid out, in 
which mulberry trees, vines, olives and various herbs 
were planted. A commissary was opened, from which 
provisions were distributed to the colonists. 

Oglethorpe Treats with the Indians 

The chief of the tribe of Yamacraws was one Tomo 
Chi Chi, an aged man of exceptional character. He 
and Oglethorpe became fast friends, a fact which 
accounts for the freedom the settlers enjoyed from 
troubles with the Indians. As soon as the work of 
laying out the town and erecting dwellings was under 
wa}^, Oglethorpe arranged through Tomo Chi Chi 
a meeting of all the tribes living in the neighborhood, 
and on May 21st, 1733, a treaty was made with the 
Creeks, Uchees and Cherokees, affirming the title of 
the colony of Georgia to the region lying between 
the Savannah and Altamaha Rivers, and westward 
as far as tide water ran, several islands along the 



History of Ccorg'ui 49 

coast being reserved to the Indians. The interpreter 
who made this treaty possible was a half-breed 
woman named Mary Musgrove, who had married 
an English trader. 

Indian Chiefs go to England 

When Oglethorpe returned to England in 1734 to 
bring out more settlers, he took with him Tomo Chi 
Chi and a party of chiefs. After a voyage of seventy 
days, the party disembarked in England, and were 
conveyed in three of the king's coaches to Kensington 
Palace, where the Indians were received by the King. 
The simple-minded red men wished to be presented 
in their usual scanty costume, which left most of the 
body bare, but Oglethorpe dissuaded them from so 
doing, though all painted their faces. Later the 
Indians were presented to the Archbishop of Canter- 
bury, visited Eton, Hampton Court, the Tower of 
London, and other noted places. Tomo Chi Chi 
was deeply impressed by the magnificence of Lon- 
don and the visible signs of the power of England, 
and was always on the side of peaceful relations with 
the white man. 

Coming of the Salzburgers^ 

The activity of the Trustees did not cease with the 
settling of one place. The first important band of 

: ^ Strobel, P. A., The Salzburgers. This book, published in 
1855 and now out of print, gives the facts relative to the Salz- 
burjjer settlement. 



50 



History of Georgia 



Augusta 




Frederic; 







3V 



Settlement of Georgfia 
1733-1752 



History of Georgia 51 

colonists to come after the founding of Savannah was 
a party of Salzburgers, who were located, in 1734, 
at a point on the Savannah River, twenty-five miles 
north of Savannah. The immigrants named the place 
Ebenezer (stone of help) "in commemoration of 
their wondrous deliverances and present joys." The 
Salzburgers were a protestant people who had 
the misfortune to live in the territory of a Catho- 
lic Bishop in South Germany. Their ruler sub- 
jected them to such cruel persecution that they were 
forced to forsake their homes. The Salzburgers 
were scattered out over Europe and America. There 
were seventy-eight persons in their first migration to 
Georgia. The town of Ebenezer was located in the 
present county of Effingham. It was not built on the 
Savannah River, but six miles off on a winding creek 
which flowed into the river. By water the distance 
to the river was twenty-five miles. Transportation 
was, therefore, difficult, since there were no roads and 
the people had to depend on the water. The Ger- 
mans asked to be removed to a more convenient loca- 
tion on the river, and this was done in 1736. 

Other Salzburgers came to Georgia and made set- 
tlements along the Savannah. By 1741 there were 
1,200 German Protestants in the colony, and in 1751 
their number had increased to 1,500. These Ger- 
mans, coming to secure religious liberty, settled in 
groups or congregations with the church as the center 
of their community life. Eventually the religious 



52 History of Georgia 

character of their settlements was abandoned, they 
ceased being a separate people, and were absorbed 
in the population of Georgia. Needless to say, with 
their habits of industry and high moral ideals, these 
people were a valuable element in the colony. 

The Moravians^ 

In 1735 a small band of Moravians, another Ger- 
man protestant sect, came to Georgia and were given 
homes on the Savannah River, between Ebenezer and 
Savannah. There were only forty-seven persons in 
this party. Though a people of great worth, frugal, 
industrious, and orderly, they played no part in the 
development of Georgia. Their religion prohibited 
them from fighting and they had come to Georgia 
on the express agreement that they were not to be 
called on for military service. Their aversion for 
war, even in self-defense, could not be understood by 
the other colonists, and the Moravians found them- 
selves uncomfortable in Georgia. They accordingly 
left the colony between 1738 and 1740, going to 
Pennsylvania. 

Augusta 

During the same year, 1735, another town was 
laid out, this time north of Savannah. The town 
was named Augusta in honor of one of the royal 



^ Fries, Adelaide L., The Moravians in Georgia. 



History of Georgia 53 

princesses. Augusta soon became quite an important 
place for Indian trade, not less than six hundred 
persons engaged in this business having the town as 
headquarters. Some two thousand pack horse loads 
of skins were annually brought to the town. 

Scots Settle on the Altamaha River, 1736 

The next accession of colonists was a company of 
Scotch Highlanders, who were located on the 
Altamaha River, some sixteen miles from its mouth. 
The town they named New Inverness, for their native 
town in Scotland, and the district Darien, in memory 
of the unsuccessful settlement of the Isthmus of 
Darien in America in 1698. Later the town itself 
became known as Darien. Some of the early Eng- 
lish immigrants were already proving themselves un- 
fitted for pioneer life, and Oglethorpe brought over 
these Highlanders because they were a hardier and 
more energetic people. This settlement was made 
with the view of strengthening the southern frontier 
of Georgia. The Scots were especially well qualified 
for military service. 

Frederica Foundea 

In the year 1736 the town of Frederica, so named 
in honor of Frederick, Prince of Wales, only son of 
George II, was laid out. The village was placed on 
St. Simon's Island, on the sound that separates the 
island from the mainland. A fort was built at the 



54 History of Geoj'gia 

southern extremity of the island. Frederica was 
founded to give additional strength to the colony on 
its exposed side. 

Forgotten Villages^ 

In addition to these more important settlements, 
a number of smaller villages or hamlets were laid 
out. Even the names of some of them have been 
forgotten. A number of French families were 
located at a village named Highgate, about five miles 
from Savannah. Abercorn, Hampstead and Joseph's 
Town were other villages near Savannah. 

Parliamentary Appropriations 

To June, 1740, Parliament had appropriated nearly 
a half million dollars to aid the colony, and about 
ninety thousand more had been donated by private 
persons. With this assistance the Trust had sent over 
1,521 settlers, of whom 915 were English and Scotch, 
and 606 foreign protestants. There were also a few 
who had come over at their own expense. 

Government of the Colony 

None of the Trustees except Oglethorpe came to 
Georgia. They remained in London and transacted 
the business of the colony as best they could through 
written orders and correspondence with those who 

^ Jones, C. C, Dead Towns of Georgia. 



History of Georgia 55 

were entrusted with the local administration. As 
long as Oglethorpe lived in Georgia he had complete 
control over the colony. In 1741 Georgia was 
divided into two counties, one called Savannah 
County, including all the settlements on the Savan- 
nah and southward to the Altamaha; the other, 
Frederica, embracing Darien and the settlements 
south of the Altamaha. For each county a President 
and four assistants were authorized. In Savannah 
County William Stephens,^ who had been the resi- 
dent secretary of the Trustees, was made President. 
No President was appointed for Frederica County, 
because Oglethorpe was usually in Frederica, look- 
ing after the military defenses of the colony. On 
Oglethorpe's return to England in 1743, Frederica 
County was abolished and Stephens was made Presi- 
dent for the entire colony. The duties of the President 
and assistants were to preside as judges in the court 
at Savannah, to act as general overseers of affairs and 
keep the Trustees informed as to the condition of 
the colony. 



^ William Stephens, the first President of the colony of Georgia, 
was born on the Isle of Wight, off the south coast of England. 
He came to Georgia late in life to act as secretary to the Trus- 
tees. He was elevated to the Presidency of the colony after Ogle- 
thorpe left, being then more than seventy years old. During his 
entire stay in Georgia, he kept a diary, which has been published 
in two large volumes. This diary is one of the most important 
sources of information about the early history of Georgia. 



56 Histo?-y of Georgia 

Summary 

After securing a charter from King George II, 
in 1732, conveying to them the land lying between 
the Altamaha and the Savannah Rivers, the Trustees 
at once began to send out colonists. The towns of 
Savannah, Ebenezer, Darien, Frederica and Augusta 
and several minor settlements were established with- 
in three years after the landing of the first colonists. 
This was very quick work, when the difficulties of 
crossing the ocean and of making headway in the 
wilderness are considered. It is interesting to note 
that Georgia was quite a cosmopolitan colony, con- 
taining English, Scotch, German and French people. 
More than half a million dollars were expended in 
the first seven years in furthering the plans of the 
Trustees, most of which was contributed by the Eng- 
lish government. Some 1,500 persons were sent over 
at the expense of the Trust. The government of the 
colony was virtually in the hands of Oglethorpe as 
long as he remained in Georgia. On his final return 
to England, in 1743, William Stephens was appointed 
^'President" of the colony. No form of self-govern- 
ment was as yet allowed the colonists. 

Additional Reading: 

Mary Musgrove: Harris, Joel Chandler, Stories of Georgia^ 
pp. 28-40. 



CHAPTER V 

THE CRITICAL PERIOD, 1 733-1 750 

Unfavorable Physical Conditions 

In spite of the liberal support of Parliament, the 
aid of generous individuals and the untiring efforts of 
Oglethorpe and the Trustees, the colony was not at 
first successful. Conditions of pioneer life are always 
severe and try the strength of the hardiest of men, 
for it is no easy task to make clearings in the wilder- 
ness for farming purposes. But the conditions in 
Georgia were unusually bad. We have seen from the 
first chapter that the coast is low, flat and swampy; 
the soil sandy and sometimes very unfertile, and the 
climate malarious. The settlers found it hard to make 
a living, sickness was very common and deaths fre- 
quent. Ten of the forty-seven Moravians died in 
the three or four years they lived in Georgia. The 
records kept by the Dorchester colony^ from 1752 to 
1772 showed one hundred and thirty-four deaths to 
one hundred and ninety-three births. Malarial fever 
was the usual trouble. The Salzburgers suffered 
from the same disease. The number of orphans be- 
came sufficiently large to lead to the establishment 

^ See page 9I. 

57 



58 History of Georgia 

of an orphans' asylum near Savannah/ The work 
of clearing the land killed many settlers, and even 
when at a later day rice plantations had been created 
by negro labor, the white owners found it prudent 
to live away from the swampy region during a part 
of the year. 

Peculiar Method of Granting Lands 

Even had the physical environment been ideal, the 
peculiar regulations of the Trustees governing the 
holding of land, and their policy in regard to slavery, 
would have prevented the rapid development of the 
colony. A limit of fifty acres was set for each man 
who went to Georgia at the expense of the Trust. 
Anyone who went at his own expense and carried as 
many as ten white servants was allowed five hundred 
acres. In no case was complete ownership of the 
land given to the settler. He had possession during 
his life, but was prohibited from selling, mortgaging 
or giving away his land. On his death, his eldest 
son inherited the property. If there were no male 
heirs, the property went back to the Trust. 

Explanation of this Law 

The idea of the Trustees in making such land laws 
becomes clear when we recall the purposes for which 

^ This was the famous Bethesda Orphanage, established in 
1740 through the exertions of Reverend George Whitefield. One 
hundred and fifty orphans were received during the first year. 



History of Georgia 59 

the colony was established. The two main ends sought 
were to aid an unfortunate class of people who had 
failed in life, and to protect South Carolina. The 
Trustees, realizing the poor material from which 
they were attempting to make self-supporting 
colonists, thought by denying entire control over the 
land to create a permanent class of small land- 
holders, prevent the growth of large plantations, and 
protect the less industrious from sinking into the 
condition of tenants, servants and day laborers. At 
the time of the founding of Georgia, there were many 
complaints from South Carolina as to the bad effects 
of the ownership of much of the land by a few rich 
men. 

From the military point of view, the idea was to 
have a man permanently located on each fifty acre 
tract. Each settler was regarded as a soldier, and, 
of course, if the small farms were allowed to be- 
come united, the military strength of the colony 
would be lessened. 

Prohibition of Slavery 

As in the case of the land laws, economic and 
military considerations account for the prohibition 
of negro slavery. It was the purpose of the founders 
to give a new start in life to men who had failed. 
The expense of migrating from the Old World to 
the New was borne by the Trustees, and everything 
necessary to begin farming was furnished the immi- 



60 History of Georgia 

grants, such as land, tools and even provisions for a 
year. But they were not to be relieved from doing 
actual work with their hands. The Trustees did not 
propose to allow the immigrants to bask in the warm 
southern sunshine and reap the rewards of slave 
labor. 

From the military point of view, the defenseless- 
ness of South Carolina was due in large measure to 
the fact that the number of slaves in that colony far 
exceeded the number of white people. In 1733 there 
were 22,000 blacks to 7,333 whites. The danger of a 
slave insurrection was always imminent. Clearly, 
if slavery were permitted in Georgia, the new colony 
would itself be as weak as South Carolina, and would 
be of no use as a military protection. 

Aside from the moral and military objections to 
slavery, the Trustees denied the use of negroes on the 
further ground that while recognizing the necessity 
for slaves in producing the heavier commodities, such 
as rice and lumber, it was their intention that the 
Georgians should confine their efforts largely to 
growing grapes for wine-making and the production 
of raw silk. In such light employments the labor of 
women and children, the Trustees believed, would 
be more useful and far less expensive than that of 
negro slaves. Strenuous efforts over a long period of 
time were made to produce silk and wine in Georgia. 
Skilled foreigners were brought over to instruct the 
people in these industries, and the efforts of the 



History of Georgia 61 

colonists were encouraged by large bounties. But 
neither industry succeeded. Various reasons are given 
for this failure — the variableness of the climate, lack 
of skill on the part of the colonists, and the greater 
profit to be made from other lines of agriculture for 
which conditions were more favorable. 

Prohibition of Rum 

Another law which caused a good deal of grum- 
bling on the part of the colonists was the prohibition 
of the importation or sale of whiskey. The use of 
rum and brandy, it was held, would tend to encour- 
age those habits of idleness from which many of the 
new settlers had suffered. What has already been 
said as to the growth of the drink habit in England 
will be a sufficient explanation of the action of the 
Trustees in prohibiting the use of intoxicants. Beer 
and wine were not included in this prohibition. 
Oglethorpe provided both for his first shipload of 
immigrants. 

Objections to the Land Law 

While the law against the complete ownership 
of land was a preventive of the growth of large 
estates, it also discouraged the more thrifty colonists. 
It was absurd to suppose that all the colonists were 
of equal capacity, thrift and diligence. The Trustees 
showed a limited knowledge of human nature in 
thinking that they could legislate people into 



62 History of Georgia 

equality. It was natural that the unprogressive 
element should sell out their land to the industrious 
and saving, and it was unjust to impede the one class 
in order to furnish an artificial prop to the other. 
The settlers in and about Savannah early became dis- 
satisfied with the form of land tenure and petitioned 
for a change. It was declared that fifty acres was 
an insufiicient amount of land and that sometimes 
even that small area lay on the pine barrens or in 
marshes. 

Another serious objection to the law was that the 
immigration of independent colonists of means was 
prevented by the denial of complete possession of 
the land. It will be recalled that the Trustees did 
not confine the grants of land to persons sent over 
at the expense of the Trust. Any one who desired 
to do so was free to immigrate to Georgia at his own 
charge, provided he carried ten white male servants. 
Under this provision only 27,000 acres of land were 
distributed. The largest number of grants in any one 
year was nineteen, in 1736. After that year the num- 
ber steadily declined, until in 1740 there was only 
one applicant. This failure to attract what was the 
most desirable kind of settlers was due to the land 
tenure regulations and the denial of slavery. 

The discontented colonists began to neglect their 
farms and to spend their time complaining of the 
hardships imposed upon them by the Trustees and in 
agitating for changes. Many of them abandoned the 



History of Georgia 63 

colony. One of the discontented element told the 
Trustees, before whom he appeared in 1739, ^^^^ 
there were not more than a thousand people left in 
Georgia. 

Oglethorpe Opposes Change 

The Trustees were slow in making changes. They 
knew nothing at first hand of the needs of the colo- 
nists, but had to depend on information given them 
by their secretary, William Stephens, and General 
Oglethorpe, both of whom were opposed to free 
ownership of land and to slavery. Stephens and 
Oglethorpe wrote the Trustees that the people who 
left Georgia were of an extremely undesirable class 
and that the colony was fortunate in losing them. So 
great became the discouragement of the people that 
Oglethorpe in 1739 tried to stimulate them by offer- 
ing a prize of two shillings for each bushel of corn 
produced, and one shilling for each bushel of pota- 
toes, but this experiment did not succeed. 

Repeal of the Land Law 

The agitation against the land law and the prohi- 
bition of slavery was in progress when the war with 
Spain broke out.^ A regiment of soldiers was sent 
to Georgia and stationed on the southern frontier. 
The presence of the regiment made the military 



^ See Chapter VI. 



64 History of Georgia 

feature of the colony of less importance, and the 
Trustees took this opportunity to modify the land 
law, though it was only in 1750, after a succession of 
changes had been made, that absolute possession of 
lands was given the colonists. 

Repeal of Prohibition 

The prohibition of whiskey selling and drinking 
did not work very successfully. As has been said, beer 
and wine were not prohibited, and licenses were 
issued for the sale of these beverages. It was found 
impossible to prevent licensed houses and blind tigers 
(to use a phrase now current) from selling whiskey. 
In 1738 the magistrates of Savannah called attention 
to the "vile abuse lately crept in among us, in selling 
spirituous Liquors in many private houses, unlicensed 
to sell any sort of Drink, which produced grievous 
consequences, and would tend to the Ruin of the 
Colony if not suppressed." The juries, however, 
refused to convict for the offense of operating un- 
licensed saloons. In 1742 the matter was laid before 
Parliament, and the Trustees were required by parlia- 
mentary act to repeal the law on this subject. 

Indented Secvants 

Though negro slavery was denied, a system of 
indented servants was established. Any settler was 
allowed to bring over white laborers from Europe, 
binding them by a legal agreement known as an 



History of Georgia 65 

"indenture," to work a certain term of years in return 
for the passage money. The Trustees offered grants 
of twenty acres and later of fifty acres to those in- 
dented servants who faithfully worked out their time 
and desired to remain. A few of the servants brought 
over under this arrangement did well and took 
advantage of the Trustees' offer, but by far the larger 
number refused to work after a short time, became 
idle, vicious and drunken, killed the cattle of their 
masters and of the Trust, and ran away to South 
Carolina, where every obstacle was put in the way 
of their recapture. Oglethorpe wrote in 1739 that 
the people were disgusted with white servants. Of 
course, they were no better suited than their masters 
for labor in the climate of Georgia. The trouble 
with white servants naturally increased the demand 
for slaves. 

Disagreement among Colonists about Slavery 

At first only the Savannah people urged the Trus- 
tees to allow slaves. President Stephens and Ogle- 
thorpe reported to the Trustees that it was only the 
most worthless and idle element that desired negroes, 
and this opinion was apparently sustained by the fact 
that the people of Ebenezer and Darien petitioned 
against the introduction of slaves. The German and 
Scotch settlers had come largely from the class of 
people who were accustomed to hard manual toil; 
but the Savannah people came from the trading and 



66 History of Georgia 

professional classes of England, and were unfitted 
for agricultural labor in the Georgia climate. 

For a number of years the Trustees refused to 
listen to any petitions or resolutions on this subject. 
They had definitely decided never to allow slavery, 
and this determination was weakened only when they 
came to realize that the colony would be depopulated 
unless slavery was permitted. 

Agreement among Colonists 

With every passing year it became harder to make 
a living, and finally the people at Ebenezer and 
Darien, the Germans and Scots, joined with the other 
colonists in petitioning for negroes. The case of the 
colonists was strongly expressed by James Haber- 
sham,^ one of the most highly respected men of 
Savannah. Habersham had been opposed to slaves. 



^ James Habersham was born in England twenty years before 
the charter of Georgia was granted. He was therefore twenty- 
seven years of age when the first of the letters below was written. 
He was a member of the first business house established in Georgia. 
He held many positions of honor, and when the Revolution broke 
out, took the side of the king against the Patriots, a course taken 
by many of the older colonists. In regard to slavery, Habersham 
wrote the Trustees in 1739 as follows: "Though the people have 
been as industrious as possible, they are not able to live; for I be- 
lieve there is not an instance of one planter in the colony who 
can support his family with his own produce. Besides, the sun is 
so extremely hot here in the summer, that no white man can stay 
In the field the best part of the day. All who come to settle here 
are put into a wilderness, which they have to clear before they 
can plant It ; which Is so intolerably costly, with white hands. 



History of Georgia 67 

SO that when he expressed the opinion that the colony 
would not survive unless the law was changed, his 
word carried great weight. In 1748, Reverend Mr. 
Bolzius, pastor of the Germans at Ebenezer, who 
had been a strong upholder of the views of the Trus- 
tees, saw fit to write them: "Things being now in 
such a melancholy state, I must humbly beseech your 
honors not to regard any more our or our friends' 
petitions against negroes." In the same year Reverend 
George Whitefield added his testimony to the neces- 
sity for slaves. 

There being now a practically unanimous desire 
in the colony for negroes, and it appearing that the 
people would leave unless slavery was allowed, the 
Trustees in 1749 removed the restrictions, thus intro- 
ducing into Georgia a system of labor which brought 
in its train many important consequences. 

that I have heard some affirm that to clear our good land — which 
is swamp — effectually with them, would cost almost as much as 
they could buy land for in some parts of England." Eight years 
later, one of his letters indicated that matters were getting worse: 
*'The few remaining inhabitants here are so dispirited and heart- 
broken, that, supposing any real encouragement could be pro- 
posed, I almost reckon it an impossibility to persuade them that 
anything of this nature can be done, and he that would attempt 
it would be looked upon rather as their enemy than their friend, 
and I must confess that things have had such a dreadful appear- 
ance for some time past, that, rather than see the colony deserted 
and brought to desolation, and the inhabitants reduced to want and 
beggary, I really, with the Trustees, would have consented to 
the use of negroes, and was sorry to hear that they had written 
so warmly against them," 



68 History of Georgia 

Summary 

The progress of the colony was slow during the 
first twenty years on account of the policy of the 
Trustees in denying entire control over the lands 
granted to the settlers, and in prohibiting slavery 
and whiskey. These laws were due partly to the feel- 
ing that many of the colonists were so weak that they 
had to be protected from the danger of sinking into 
the condition of laborers and from idle and vicious 
habits, and partly to the desire to make the colony 
strong in a military way for the protection of South 
Carolina. But it was found in practice that the laws 
would not work, and in order to prevent the abandon- 
ment of the colony, the Trustees were compelled to 
repeal all of their restrictive laws. We shall see that 
an era of great prosperity followed the change. 



CHAPTER VI 

THE SPANISH WAR, 1740-1742 

Boundary Dispute 

In a former chapter^ the rival claims of the great 
powers to the land of North America were explained. 
Spain, it will be remembered, claimed that the Eng- 
lish settlement of Georgia was an encroachment on 
her territory, which, according to the Spanish view, 
extended as far north as the Edisto River, in South 
Carolina. The English, on the other hand, contended 
that the St. John's River was the northern boundary 
of the Spanish province of Florida. 

Oglethorpe Prepares for War 

Three years after the first immigrants reached 
Georgia the Spanish government demanded that the 
English abandon all settlements in the new colony, 
and Oglethorpe saw that sooner or later it would be 
necessary to end the dispute by war. He at once 
began to prepare for the struggle. Frederica and 
Darien were especially designed to protect the 
southern frontier; on the southern end of St. Simon's 
Island Fort St. Simon's was erected ; Fort St. Andrew 

^ See chapter IV. 

69 



70 History of Georgia 

and Fort William were built on the two extremities 
of Cumberland Island, while near the mouth of St. 
John's River, on San Juan Island, another fort, called 
Fort St. George, was placed. 

Financial Difficulties 

Oglethorpe was almost fatally handicapped in 
these preparations by lack of cooperation from Eng- 
land. His letters^ are full of entreaties for money 
with which to carry on the work of fortification. 
He complained that his forts were falling into ruin, 
and that he lacked guns, ships and ammunition. 
Even when grants were made by Parliament, the 
money often came too late to be used to the greatest 
advantage. The policy of the prime minister of the 
time, Walpole, was to preserve peace, if possible, 
and he was slow to make warlike preparations. In 
the direction of furnishing soldiers, the most the 
government could be induced to do was to authorize 
Oglethorpe to raise a regiment in England. Ogle- 
thorpe succeeded in doing this and was made Colonel 
of the force. In addition, Parliament created him 
General and Commander-in-Chief of his Majesty's 
forces in South Carolina and Georgia. 

Discontent of the Colonists 

These preparations for war were going on at the 
time when the agitation against the laws of the Trus- 

^ Georgia Historical Society, Collections III. Contains many 
Oglethorpe letters. 



History of Georgia 71 

tees in regard to land tenure and slavery was at its 
height. The war scare and the necessity of requir- 
ing the people to do garrison duty increased the dis- 
tress of the colonists by interrupting agricultural 
pursuits. Many settlers were reduced to dependence 
upon the Trust for their food, and large numbers of 
them deserted the colony, going to South Carolina, 
where conditions were more favorable. In 1739, 
Oglethorpe informed the Trustees that it was so diffi- 
cult to obtain food that colonists were stealing the 
cattle belonging to the Trust. 

The Wesleys 

The backwardness of the government In support- 
ing Oglethorpe, and the distress of the colonists, were 
enough to make the General's position decidedly 
unpleasant, but in addition to his other worries, 
religious dissension had to be dealt with. Reverend 
John Wesley and his brother Charles came to 
Georgia in 1736, the former locating at Savannah, 
the latter at Frederlca. They came at the Invitation 
of the Trustees to perform the duties of pastor at 
Savannah and Frederlca, respectively. These great 
and good men, who later became so famous as the 
founders of Methodism, were at that time ministers 
in the regular English Church. They were com- 
paratively young, John being thirty-three, and 
Charles twenty-nine, and did not fit in very well 
with the pioneer society of Georgia. The colonists 



72 History of Georgia 

felt that they interfered too much in their private 
affairs and in the civil administration of the law. 
They became unpopular with the settlers, and realiz- 
ing that their usefulness would be greater in other 
fields, they left Georgia, Charles in the year of his 
arrival, John in 1737. 

Oglethorpe Invades Florida 

In 1713 at the close of the famous war of the 
Spanish Succession, England had agreed not to en- 
gage in trade with Spain's South American colonies, 
except that once every year a shipload of merchan- 
dise might be sent. But the English merchantmen 
had not obeyed the law. They found it profitable to 
smuggle goods into the Spanish colonies. In order 
to prevent this illegal traffic, Spain stationed ships 
along the coast to catch the smugglers, and they often 
maltreated the sailors on trading vessels which had 
been seized. Public opinion in England demanded 
that Spain be punished, and in 1739 England de- 
clared war. 

The struggle between Oglethorpe and the Span- 
iards in Florida is, therefore, a part of the larger war. 
Although Georgia was much weaker In military re- 
sources than Florida, Oglethorpe decided to put on 
a bold front and Invade the enemy's country. This 
was good policy, because an agricultural people are 
stronger In an offensive expedition than as a defen- 
sive force. Accordingly. In January, 1740, the Gen- 



History of Georgia 



73 




Coast of Georgia and Florida: Spanish War. 



74 History of Georgia 

cral ascended the St. John's River, and, supported 
by Indians, took two Spanish forts, Picolata and St. 
Francis, facing each other on opposite sides of the 
river, but did not advance across the narrow neck 
of land, twenty miles, approximately, against St. Au- 
gustine, the great fortress of Florida. These two 
forts were important because, being on opposite sides 
of the river, they enabled the Spaniards to command 
an easy passage of the stream, in the event they de- 
cided to make an attack on Georgia by land. After 
taking these forts, Oglethorpe returned to Georgia, 
and we next hear of him before the Assembly in 
South Carolina, pleading for assistance in men and 
money. South Carolina was very unwilling to help, 
because that colony did not relish the idea of play- 
ing second fiddle to the younger colony of Georgia. 
The aid they gave amounted to very little, and even 
those South Carolinans who joined Oglethorpe's 
army cooperated in a half-hearted way. 

The Unsuccessful Siege of St. Augustine 

In May, the General, with an army the size of 
which has been variously stated, but which did not 
exceed two thousand men, advanced against St. Au- 
gustine. His plan was a combined land and sea 
attack. The army was to land near the mouth of St. 
John's River and march against the city; the fleet of 
six British men-of-war was to enter the narrow sound 
that separates the island of Anastasia from the main- 



History of Georgia 75 

land, and attack the city in front. Oglethorpe exe- 
cuted his part of the movement successfully, but the 
fleet was unable to enter the sound on account of the 
shallowness of the water. The intended storming 
of the city had to be abandoned, and Oglethorpe de- 
cided to lay siege to the place. This decision turned 
out to be an error of judgment. The town was well 
fortified, with fifty cannon mounted on its walls; the 
besieged Spaniards outnumbered the besiegers, while 
the war vessels could give no effective aid. In spite 
of these facts, the town was besieged for three weeks, 
but the General's cannon were of such small size 
and the distance so great that little impression was 
made on the strong walls of the fortress. In June 
the Spaniards made a successful sortie, reprovisioned 
the town, and shortly afterwards a large reinforce- 
ment of men and food came from Cuba. The situa- 
tion was clearly hopeless, Oglethorpe was sick with 
fever, and his troops exhausted. The siege was there- 
fore abandoned and the army returned to Georgia, 
reaching Frederica on July loth. 

The Spanish Invade Georgia, 1742 

Two years passed before the Spanish undertook 
to carry out their long cherished plan of destroying 
the colony of Georgia. In 1742, the British siege 
of Havana, Cuba, at that time a Spanish possession, 
failed, and a large force was set free. This force 
was sent to St. Augustine to help the garrison there 



76 History of Georgia 



in the movement against Georgia. The main attack 
of the Spaniards came in July, and was directed 
against Frederica. On the 5th, a fleet of thirty-six 
vessels appeared before St. Simon's Fort. To meet 
the Spanish army of five thousand men (some author- 
ities say six thousand), Oglethorpe had less than 
seven hundred soldiers. The approaching Spanish 
fleet was cannonaded by the guns of the Fort, but 
after four hours of fierce fighting succeeded in get- 
ting by in the direction of Frederica. Oglethorpe 
then concluding that the main attack would be by 
water, withdrew from Fort St. Simon's, dismantling 
the Fort, and marched his men back to Frederica. 
The Spanish army, however, disembarked about four 
miles from the Fort, and marched across to occupy 
it, pitching their camp there. 

The only avenue of approach from the camp of the 
enemy to Frederica was a narrow, rough road which 
Oglethorpe had cut through the dense woods and 
marshes. On the 7th of July, the advance guard of 
the Spaniards set out upon this road. Oglethorpe 
realized that his only chance of defeating the over- 
whelming force against him was to engage the enemy 
while they were straggling through the woods. Had 
they been given time to arrange a line of battle and 
attack him with their full force, defeat would have 
been inevitable. The General therefore marched 
out of Frederica with a party of Indians, Rangers, 
p.nd Highlanders, met the Spanish and won a signal 



History of Georgia 77 

victory, either killing or capturing the greater part 
of the advance guard of about two hundred. He 
pursued the flying enemy almost back to their camp, 
and leaving three platoons of his regiment and the 
company of Highlanders to watch the enemy, re- 
turned to Frederica to prepare the remainder of 
his army to receive the attack of the main body of 
the Spanish army. 

Battle of Bloody Marsh 

While Oglethorpe was in Frederica, another de- 
tachment of the Spaniards advanced against the force 
he had left in the woods, and being overwhelmed, 
the Georgians retreated in the direction of Frederica. 
Two of the three platoons fled in wild disorder, but 
on reaching a certain bend in the road where there 
was an open area, one of the platoons, under Lieu- 
tenant Sutherland, and the company of Highlanders, 
commanded by Captain Mackay, decided to make a 
stand. They artfully concealed themselves in the 
woods and marsh about the open space. On reach- 
ing this point the pursuing Spanish halted to prepare 
a meal. Totally unconscious of their peril, they laid 
aside their arms, when suddenly a murderous fire 
was poured into the party from the hidden force of 
Georgians. About two hundred Spaniards were 
killed, only a few managing to escape back to the 
camp. This affair was known as the battle of Bloody 
Marsh. As soon as Oglethorpe heard the firing he 



78 History of Georgia 

hastened up to support his men, but arrived too late 
to take part in the battle. 

Oglethorpe Works a Stratagem 

After this decisive repulse the Spanish army re- 
mained in their camp at St. Simon's for several days, 
debating what course to follow. Dissension sprang 
up among the officers, and the several divisions of 
the army refused to cooperate. Getting word of 
this state of affairs, Oglethorpe decided to make a 
night attack on the camp. When about a mile and 
a half from the camp, a Frenchman who had joined 
the Georgia force as a volunteer, suddenly fired his 
gun as a signal and deserted to the enemy. Ogle- 
thorpe was therefore obliged to give up the attack, 
as its only hope of success lay in surprising the 
Spanish. Later in the day he hit upon the happy idea 
of turning to his own advantage the treachery of 
the French deserter. He wrote a letter to the French- 
man in a manner intended to convince the Spanish 
commander (anticipating that the letter would fall 
into his hands) that the Frenchman was not really a 
deserter, but was a paid spy. Oglethorpe hired a 
Spanish prisoner to deliver the letter; and, as Ogle- 
thorpe had hoped, it was given to the Spanish com- 
mander. On opening the letter the Spaniard read 
instructions from Oglethorpe that the Frenchman 
should persuade the Spanish that they would be safe 
in attacking him on account of the weakness of the 



History of Georgia 79 

army of the Georgians; that, if the Spanish decided 
to attack, they were to be led to a certain place, 
where an ambush would be arranged; but if the 
Spanish were unwilling to attack, the deserter was to 
use his best efforts to persuade them to remain a few 
days longer, since Oglethorpe was expecting large 
reinforcements from South Carolina. 

This letter so alarmed the timorous Spanish leader 
that he lost no time in getting his army back on the 
ships and weighing anchor. The failure of this at- 
tack on Frederica and the success of Oglethorpe's 
stratagem closed the episode of the Spanish invasion, 
no further attempt being made from St. Augustine 
to destroy the colony. 

Importance of the War 

The importance of this repulse of the Spanish 
army is that it meant the success of Georgia as a mili- 
tary colony. It had been planted to protect the 
neighboring colonies from invasion and had accom- 
plished this end. As an eminent English historian 
has written: '^Had anyone foretold that within ten 
years of its foundation the little settlement, built out 
of the worthless debris of over-civilization, would 
repel a foreign enemy, and serve as an efficient bul- 
wark against the tide of invasion which menaced the 
English colonies, he would have been a sanguine 
man."^ 



^ Doyle, J. A., English Colonies in America, V, pp. 402-3. 



80 History of Georgia 

Summary 

Ever since the establishment of the Colony of 
Georgia, a Spanish attempt to destroy it had been 
expected, Spain regarding the settlements as an 
encroachment on her territory. Oglethorpe was 
greatly hampered in preparing to meet attack on 
account of the internal troubles of the colony, the 
niggardly support of Parliament and the lack of suf- 
ficient aid from the stronger Colony of South Caro- 
lina. In 1740, he made an unsuccessful attack on 
St. Augustine. Two years later the Spanish invaded 
Georgia, five thousand strong, but were decisively 
defeated by Oglethorpe with a force of six hundred 
and fifty men, the victory being due to Oglethorpe's 
superior generalship and the timidity of the invaders. 
The victory was of first importance, because, if 
Georgia had been destroyed, the war would have been 
carried into the other English colonies. 

Additional Reading: 

Cooper, H. C, Life of Ogletliorpe, Chaps. XVI and XVIII. 



CHAPTER VII 

GEORGIA BECOMES A ROYAL PROVINCE, 1754 

Reasons Why the Trustees Resigned 

When the Trustees were forced by the popular 
clamor to allow slaves and rum to be introduced 
and to abandon their land system, they felt that their 
plans had been a failure. Furthermore, interest in 
the colony had largely died out in England, private 
donations had ceased, and Parliament in 175 1 failed 
to make any appropriation to carry on the afifairs 
of the colony. The Trust would have expired in 
June, 1753, by the terms of the Charter, but the 
Trustees resigned in June, 1752, feeling that they 
could be of no further use, and desiring to place 
on other shoulders the responsibility of further con- 
ducting the affairs of the colony. Georgia passed 
under the direct control of the Crown. A proclama- 
tion was issued requiring the existing officials in 
Georgia to remain at their post until a new form 
of government could be arranged. 

The Three Types of Colonies 

Among the original thirteen colonies that became 
the United States there were three varieties of gov- 

81 



82 History of Georgia 

ernment. In Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode 
Island the people enjoyed self-government under 
liberal charters granted them by the English 
monarch. Connecticut and Rhode Island retained 
their local control throughout the colonial period. 
Another type was the proprietary colony, such as 
Pennsylvania, New York and the Carolinas. In this 
form of colony the appointment of the officials was 
usually in the hands of an individual to whom the 
king had granted the colony as a sort of estate. The 
majority of the colonies were originally of this type. 
The prevailing form of colonial government in the 
eighteenth century, however, was the Royal Province. 
The English government had a much larger share 
in the government of the royal province than in the 
other types of colonies, as the governor and council 
were appointed by the king and were not responsible 
to the people of the province. Such a colony had 
no charter, but the powers and duties of the officials 
were contained in their commissions and instruc- 
tions. In all the colonies the people had some voice 
in the government, since the members of the lower 
house of the Assembly were elected by popular vote. 
The establishment of a proprietary form of gov- 
ernment in Georgia in 1732 was a return to the older 
form of colonial organization. The twenty-one 
Trustees were given a large measure of control and 
no provision was made for an Assembly of elected 
representatives. The position of the proprietors of 



History of Georgia 83 

Georgia, however, was very different from that of 
the earlier proprietors. They were prohibited from 
deriving any profit from the colony and could own 
no land in it, whereas profit was the sole attraction 
of their positions to the proprietors of most of the 
older colonies. 

How England Governed the Provinces 

The control of Great Britain over the colonies was 
exercised through various executive boards, of which 
the most important was the Board of Commissioners 
for Trade and Plantations, popularly known as the 
''Board of Trade." This Board was responsible to 
the Privy Council of the king. It was the duty of 
the Board of Trade to draw up the form of govern- 
ment, to supervise colonial legislation, and look after 
the commercial interests of England in the colonies. 

Georgia Becomes a Royal Province 

On the resignation of the Trustees, Georgia was 
made a royal province. In March, 1754, the Com- 
missioners of Trade and Plantations submitted a form 
of government for the new province. The following 
is a brief description of the government under which 
Georgians lived until the Revolution. 

The Governor 

At the head of the new government stood the 
Governor, who was appointed by the king and held 



84 History of Georgia 

ofBce during the king's pleasure. He was authorized 
to appoint all the officers who were not appointed 
directly by the crown; he presided over the highest 
court; could veto any act of the assembly, and had 
control over the granting of land. No governor of 
Georgia as a free state has ever been so powerful as 
were the royal governors. 

The Council 

The most interesting feature of the new govern- 
ment was the Council. It consisted of fourteen 
members appointed by the Crown to hold office for 
life, or during the king's pleasure. It not only 
advised the Governor in the performance of his 
executive duties, but sat as the upper house of the 
Assembly, in that capacity assisting in law making, 
and also, with the Governor, formed the court of 
appeals. This Council was closely modeled on the 
House of Lords of the English Parliament. 

The Commons House of Assembly 

The lower house of the Assembly was composed of 
representatives elected by the people. The first 
Assembly met in January, 1755, and consisted of 
eighteen members. Savannah had four representa- 
tives; Ebenezer, three; Augusta, two; the District 
of the Great and Little Ogeechee, two, and eight 
smaller districts one each. It was through the Com- 
mons House of Assembly that Georgians for the first 
time were permitted a share in their own government. 



History of Georgia 85 

The Suffrage 

It was many years before ev*ery Georgian obtained 
the right to vote. During colonial days and for a 
time after the Revolution, certain restrictions were 
imposed on the exercise of the voting privilege. No 
one could vote who did not own at least fifty acres 
of land, and the possession of five hundred acres was 
required of members of the Assembly. 

Courts 

The principal court established was the General 
Court, located at Savannah. To preside over this 
court the Crown appointed a Chief Justice of 
Georgia. There were three assistant judges who were 
appointed by the governor. Inferior or justice 
courts were established to try minor cases. 

Governor John Reynolds (i 754-1 756) 

There were in all three royal governors. The 
first was Captain John Reynolds, of the Royal Navy, 
who was appointed on August 6th, 1754, and reached 
Georgia in October. His tenure of office lasted only 
until August, 1756. His administration began 
pleasantly, but he soon became involved in quarrels 
with the Assembly and was recalled by the English 
government. 

Governor Henry Ellis (i 757-1 760) 

To supersede Reynolds, Henry Ellis was sent to 
Georgia in February, 1757, as Lieutenant Governor. 



86 History of Georgia 

He became Governor on May 17, 1758. Ellis was 
an efficient governor and during his short term of 
office the colony made considerable progress. The 
French and Indian War broke out while he was in 
office. It was the policy of the French and Spanish 
to stir up the Southern Indians to hostilities against 
the English. Governor Ellis's tactful handling of 
the Indians did a great deal to save the borders of 
Georgia from Indian massacres. 

The English Church Established in Georgia 

In 1758 the province was divided into eight 
Parishes. In each Parish religious services were 
directed to be observed in accordance with the forms 
of the English, or Episcopal, Church. In establish- 
ing the English Church, no other was forbidden, 
except the Catholic. There were Presbyterians, 
Baptists, Methodists, Lutherans and Hebrews in the 
colony. They were all at liberty to worship in their 
own way, but the government intended to give to 
the Episcopal Church a position of superiority simi- 
lar to that it enjoyed in England. All inhabitants, 
whatever their religious leanings, were required to 
pay the assessments to support the English Church. 

Governor James Wright (i 760-1 782) 

Governor Ellis was not a strong man physically 
and found himself unable to endure the heat of the 
southern summers. In 1759 he asked for a recall. 



History of Georgia 87 

The request was granted, and he was relieved by 
Lieutenant Governor James Wright in the fall of 

1760. Wright was made Governor on March 20th, 

1761. He was the ablest and most popular of the 
three royal governors. His administration lasted 
from 1760 until the Revolutionary War. Indeed, 
his final departure from Georgia came only with the 
end of the struggle in 1782. 

The St. Mary's River Made the Southern Boundary 

At the close of the French and Indian War, in 
1763, the French ceded to England all of their terri- 
tory east of the Mississippi River, and Spain gave up 
Florida. A proclamation of the British governmient 
of that year extended the limits of Georgia to the 
St. Mary's River. At the same time a 'Troclama- 
tion Line" was established, joining the headwaters 
of all the rivers that flow into the Atlantic. The 
colonists were required to confine their settlements 
to the east of this line. The country beyond was 
reserved to the Indians. 

Summary 

Disappointed at the failure of their plans for the 
colony, and having no funds with which to carry on 
the work, the Trustees resigned their office in 1752, 
and Georgia was made a Royal Province. This 
change meant that in the future Georgia would be 
under the direct control of the English government. 



88 



History of Ueorgia 




History of Georgia 89 

A new form of government was set up, including a 
Governor appointed for life by the Crown, a Council 
similarly appointed, and an elective House of Com- 
mons. Georgia had three royal governors. Gover- 
nor Wright was the most important of these, being 
governor during the troublous times of the Revolu- 
tion. In 1758 the Episcopal Church was established 
in the province. The territory of the colony was en- 
larged in 1763 by a royal proclamation fixing the 
southern boundary at the St. Mary's River. 

Additional Reading: 

Governor Wright: Northen, W. J., Men of Mark in Georgia, 
I, 361-365 (A. B. Caldwell, Adanta, Ga.). 



CHAPTER VIII 

MATERIAL DEVELOPMENT, 1752-1776 

Revival of the Colony after 1750 

The repeal of the restrictions on land tenure and 
slavery in 1750 vs^as the signal for a tide of immigra- 
tion to Georgia. People had been leaving for a 
number of years, usually going to South Carolina, 
w^here the more liberal policy of the government held 
out larger hopes of prosperity. There w^ere, in 1753, 
a iew more than 2,000 w^hite inhabitants in the 
colony, and a considerable number of these came 
after 1750. The movement of population w^as rapid. 
William Stephens, who vv^as holding over as Presi- 
dent until the new^ government could be installed, 
wrote that "People from all parts of his Majesty's 
dominions in America as well as from Germany and 
Great Britain are almost daily coming thither." We 
have four estimates of population during the period 
of the royal government. Arranged in tabular form, 
these figures show the rapid growth of the colony. 

Whites Negroes 

1753 2,381 1,066 

1760 6,000 3,578 

1 766 9,900 7,800 

1772 18,000 15,000 

90 



History of Georgia 91 

The whites increased nearly 700 per cent in twenty 
years, while the slaves increased much more rapidly. 

These immigrants usually came as individuals, but 
sometimes entire colonies migrated to Georgia. The 
most important case of this sort was the Dorchester 
colony. The ancestors of these people were New 
England Puritans who a half century before had 
moved to South Carolina and built a town which 
they named Dorchester. Their lands had finally be- 
come impoverished, and hearing good reports of 
Georgia, they applied for and received a grant for 
about 32,000 acres of land on the Midway River, in 
what is now Liberty County.^ The town of Sun- 
bury, built by the Dorchester people, was for a 
number of years second only to Savannah in com- 
mercial importance. It took several years for the 
Dorchester community to wind up their affairs and 
effect the removal to Georgia. After all had come, 
the new settlement contained about three hundred and 
fifty whites and fifteen hundred slaves. As the new- 
comers were a prosperous, well-to-do people of 
the strong New England stock they were a welcome 
addition to Georgia. Some of our most important 
citizens were members of the Midway settlement; 
among others, Lyman Hall, one of the signers of the 
Declaration of Independence. 

^ Stacy, James, History of the Midiuay Congregational Church, 
Liberty County, Georgia. Contains list of original settlers. 



92 History of Georgia 

Small Farms under the Trustees 

It will be recalled that under the rule of the 
Trustees immigrants who came at the expense of the 
Trust were given only fifty acres of land, and laws 
were passed to prevent the consolidation of these 
small holdings. The idea was to create a permanent 
body of small farmers, who should do their own 
work, slavery being prohibited. The result was that 
in so far as Georgia was developed at all prior to 1752, 
the work had been done by small white farmers, 
working their own land. There were, it is true, a 
few men of means in the colony who had five hundred 
acre tracts in consideration of having brought in 
indented servants, but they were far from being the 
leading element numerically. 

The fact is that during the first twenty years of 
the colony, Georgia life resembled that of New Eng- 
land. The people were not widely scattered over a 
great area of land, holding thousands of acres in each 
great plantation, as was the case in the other southern 
colonies, but lived in compact village communities 
of farmers, who cultivated the lands lying about their 
small towns. 

Coming of Large Plantations 

With the removal of the restrictions as to the acre- 
age one man might have and with the introduction 
of slavery, the artificial equality under which the 
colonists lived disappeared. Men of means began to 



History of Georgia 93 

acquire large tracts of land and develop rice planta- 
tions with slave labor. As a rule, the land acquired 
by the planter element was land hitherto unculti- 
vated, as there was an abundance. Many small farm- 
ers, however, to whom land had been given in desir- 
able places, sold out their farms and moved to the 
interior or became laborers. An instance of this sort 
is the case of Abercorn village. This hamlet was 
originally in the hands of German Lutherans, but 
we are told that ^'The faithful but poor brethren 
could not cultivate nor continue to hold them (their 
farms), and were compelled to sell them to an Eng- 
lishman in Savannah, who was likewise forced to 
re-sell them to Mr. Knox, who keeps a large number 
of negroes." Such was probably the fate of other 
villages of small white farmers. With the growth 
of large rice plantations, worked by overseers and 
negro slaves, the tendency was for the blacks to out- 
number the whites in the rural districts, so that by 
1773 there were fifteen thousand negroes to eighteen 
thousand whites, many of these whites, however, 
living in the towns. 

Interesting records have been handed down of the 
land and slave possessions of some of the great rice 
planters. James Habersham in 1765 was farming on 
a large enough scale to make seven hundred barrels 
of rice. In 1772 he owned one hundred and ninety- 
eight slaves, from whose labor he realized an annual 
income of about ten thousand dollars. His three 



94 



History of Georgia 



plantations lay on the Ogeechee River. He found 
it impossible on account of health conditions to live 
on his plantations, and, as he had other business in 
Savannah, entrusted the management of his estate to 
a hired overseer. 





_., ..-^ 


^^^^ -^^ 


ifa 


W^% 




% 


Wr 


1 -mwH 




, - *^ ■ Ipili 


mMa' 




^■H 



A Rice Plantation, Flooded. 
From Coman's "Industrial History of the United States." (McMillan.) 



Governor James Wright was another large-scale 
planter. In 1771 on his eleven plantations five 
hundred and twenty-three slaves were used, an 
average of twenty to the place. One John Graham 
owned 26,578 acres in 1771 and 228 slaves. At no 
subsequent period in Georgia history could indi- 
viduals be found who conducted planting operations 
on a larger scale than did these early rice growers. 



History of Georgia 95 

Social Classes 

With the appearance of the great planter it was 
inevitable that Georgia society should lose its former 
character. Relatively few men had the means to 
advance from the small farmer class to the ranks of 
the planters. A slave in 1772 cost two hundred and 
fifty dollars. Much expense was involved in pur- 
chasing a force of laborers and in clearing and im- 
proving land for rice culture. Hence the majority 
of Georgians remained in the small farmer class, 
many of them moved into the backwoods region of 
the coast and engaged in grazing, poultry raising 
and farming on a small scale. With wealth and 
leisure, education and culture increased among the 
planter element. Sons were often sent to Harvard, 
or Princeton, or to Europe, for their training, while 
governesses were employed for the girls. Savannah 
became quite a fashionable and wealthy town, as it 
was the custom of the planters to live there most 
of the year. 

Control of Slaves 

South Carolmians had had a great deal of trouble 
with slave insurrections, so that when slavery was 
legalized in Georgia, the Assembly drew up a code 
of laws for the control of the negroes. The severity 
of the laws, which were copied from those of South 
Carolina, indicates the danger which slavery was be- 
lieved to be to the peace of the colony. No slave 



96 History of Georgia 

was allowed to leave the plantation without a written 
permit, and if caught without such permit could be 
whipped; the willful burning or destroying of a 
stack of rice, corn or other grain, or maliciously set- 
ting fire to a tar-kiln, barrel of pitch, tar, turpentine 
or resin, was punishable by death. Death was like- 
wise the penalty for killing a white person, attempt- 
ing to raise an insurrection or to entice a fellow slave 
to run away. Slaves were prohibited from carrying 
weapons unless with the written consent of the owner, 
and under no circumstances between Saturday even- 
ing and Monday morning. Anyone selling beer or 
whiskey to a slave was liable to a fine. 

There were provisions in the law looking to the 
protection of the slave. It was made illegal to work 
slaves on the Sabbath, works of absolute necessity 
and domestic service being excepted. Slaves might 
not be worked longer than sixteen hours a day, and a 
system of fines was provided for failure to furnish 
sufficient food and clothing. 

It was illegal to teach slaves to write, though this 
law seems not to have been observed. Every owner 
of twenty slaves was required to have one white 
servant capable of bearing arms. Owners of fifty 
were to have two white servants, and an additional 
white servant for every additional twenty-five slaves. 

There was a marked spirit of consideration on the 
part of slave owners. James Habersham was deeply 
concerned for the spiritual and physical welfare of 



History of Georgia 97 

his servants. He maintained a school for them on 
one of his plantations. One of the planters, a Mr. 
Knox, sent out from England two missionaries to 
christianize his slaves. 

Agriculture and other Industries 

Rice production was the leading agricultural inter- 
est of the province. The river banks and marshes 
were devoted to this crop. Other commodities of 
which a surplus for export was made were corn, 
lumber, shingles, naval stores, cattle and horses. In- 
dustry was more diversified prior to the Revolution 
that after the rise of the cotton industry. It is true 
that the exports were small, but when it is remem- 
bered that only a few years before scores of ship- 
loads of food were annually brought to Georgia, it 
is an evidence of great progress that the people were 
feeding themselves and had something left for sale. 

Silk and Wine 

The original scheme of the Trustees looked to the 
production of silk and wine as the prime industries 
of Georgia. Governor Wright in a report of 1768^ 
gave several reasons why the silk industry was un- 
profitable. It seems that the worms rapidly 
degenerated in the Georgia climate, but that, above 
all, the population was too sparse and labor too dear. 



^ Jones, C. C, History of Georgia, II, pp. 75-78. 



98 History of Georgia 

In fact, the only thing that kept up the industry 
was the bounty allowed by the English government. 
Great Britain was anxious to become independent of 
the southern European countries in this regard, and 
did everything possible to encourage silk production 
in Georgia. The government bought all the raw 
silk, bore the expense of preparing it for the market 
and of shipping it to England, besides paying a price 
of one shilling, six pence, per pound, though the 
market price was never more than one shilling and 
often was as low as six pence. The bounties paid 
by the government in these enhanced prices amounted 
in 1768 to twenty-five hundred dollars. Heavy frosts 
in 1769 and a reduction in the government price 
practically killed the business. In 1772 the opera- 
tions of the filature in Savannah were suspended. 

The experience of the colonists in grape culture 
was quite as unhappy. These industries are better 
suited to long settled countries, where the soil is 
highly improved and labor skilled and cheap. In 
abandoning them for the heavier crops, such as rice 
and corn, Georgians were simply adapting their 
agriculture to the existing physical conditions. 

Commerce 

With the production of a surplus above the need 
of home consumption, commercial operations began. 
In the eighteen years of the Trust only one vessel 
filled with Georgia products left the colony; in 1761, 



History of Georgia 99 

45 vessels were dispatched with Georgia made com- 
modities. In 1772 the number had increased to i6i 
from Savannah and 56 from Sunbury, the total ton- 
nage being 12,124. The average value of the exports 
for five years preceding 1773 was $500,000. To 
England, deer skins, rice, indigo and naval stores 
were sent; to the West Indies, rice, corn, peas, lum- 
ber, shingles, cattle, horses, barreled beef and pork. 
The exports to Great Britain were about three-fifths 
of the whole in value. From England the colonists 
received shoes, hats and other wearing apparel, iron- 
ware, tea and paper. From the West Indies, rum 
and sugar. Flour, crackers and other foodstuffs came 
from the colonies further north. 

Summary 

After the repeal of the restrictions on land tenure 
and the prohibition of slavery, the economic life of 
Georgia underwent a complete change. Instead of 
there being a very small white population of farmers 
working little farms with their own hands, there 
speedily grew up great plantations using negro slaves 
to do the work. The population increased very 
rapidly, and every year the proportion of negroes to 
whites became larger. The most fertile parts of the 
coast, i. e., the river banks and the marshes, were 
soon transformed from wilderness to rice plantations. 
The owners of these plantations did not live on them, 
but stayed most of the time in Savannah, Sunbury 



100 History of Georgia 

and other towns. A harsh slave code was drawn up, 
but in practice much consideration was shown to 
the slaves. Within twenty years of the change from 
free to slave labor, Georgia was exporting a half 
million dollars' worth of agricultural products, and 
was well on the way to become a great and thriving 
province when the Revolutionary War came to inter- 
rupt the development. 



CHAPTER IX 

THE REVOLUTION, 1774-1778 

The American Revolution was a protest against 
the colonial system of the English government. It 
was a struggle on the part of the colonists not only to 
get the control of their own internal affairs, such as 
the right to vote taxes, but also to obtain freedom from 
the interference of the mother country in their com- 
mercial activities. 

Colonial Trade 

The colonies in the eighteenth century were re- 
garded by Great Britain simply as markets for manu- 
factured articles and as sources of raw materials. 
Commerce was hampered by a number of irritating 
laws intended to secure to English merchants a 
'monopoly of trade with the colonies. Parliament re- 
quired that certain products of America should be 
sold only to England or to some British colony. The 
list-'of such products included tobacco, cotton, silk, 
coffee, indigo, naval stores, skins, sugar and rice, 
though the last three were sometimes allowed to be 
sent to foreign countries. For instance, in 1735 
Georgia was given permission to export rice directly 
to any port south of Cape Finisterre. On the other 

101 



102 History of Georgia 

hand, no manufactured articles might be imported 
into America from nations other than the English, 
without the payment of heavy duties, nor were the 
colonists themselves permitted to establish any manu- 
facturing enterprise which came into conflict with 
English manufacturers. 

Smuggling 

In spite of these laws, for many years the colonies 
traded with the French and Spanish West Indies. 
This illegal traffic, known as smuggling, was very 
profitable and the laws were disregarded with so 
little protest from the government that the American 
merchants regarded them as practically repealed. 
The reason why the smuggling was winked at by 
English ministers was that Great Britain was en- , 
gaged in foreign wars for many years and did not 
want to irritate the colonists by enforcing the laws. 
But in 1764, at the close of the French and Indian 
War, measures were taken to break up the commerce 
between the colonies and the possessions of France 
and Spain in the New World. This sudden enforce- 
ment of laws which had become almost obsolete 
threatened to ruin the merchants of the colonies, and 
was one of the powerful influences making for 
revolution. 

Question of Taxation 

On the political side, the Revolution was due to 
the determination of the colonists to control their own 



History of Georgia 103 

government. In coming to America the colonists 
claimed that they had not abandoned but had brought 
with them the liberties of Englishmen, such as the 
right to make their own laws, the right to trial by 
jury and the right to vote their own taxes. They 
were especially sensitive about taxation, because they 
knew that for centuries Englishmen had fought 
arbitrary kings over this very question. They knew 
there could be no local self-government without con- 
trol over the purse strings. 

The Stamp Act, 1765 

The matter of taxation became acute at the close 
of the French and Indian War. France had been 
defeated and had surrendered to England all her 
territory east of the Mississippi. But the English 
government believed France would make an effort 
to reconquer the lost lands, and to prevent this British 
statesmen determined to establish a small standing 
army in the colonies. Several of the colonies had 
not responded liberally to appeals for assistance dur- 
ing the last war and it was feared that they would not 
cooperate any better in the future. Now the national 
debt of Great Britain had been enormously increased 
by the period of wars through which she had gone, 
and as the standing army was intended to protect the 
colonists, it was thought fair to require them to pay 
part of the expense. Hence, in 1765, Parliament 
passed what was known as the Stamp Act. It re- 



104 History of Georgia 

quired the colonists to purchase stamps, similar to Ij 
postage stamps, and affix them to newspapers and 
any legal documents they might have occasion to draw 
up. It was estimated that these stamps would pro- 
duce a revenue sufficient to pay less than half of the 
expense of the standing army, the balance to be paid 
by Parliamentary appropriation. 

Resistance of the Colonists 

The colonists resented this tax and refused to pay 
it on the ground that Parliament had no right to levy 
a tax of this sort, as the colonists were not directly 
represented in Parliament. When a vessel, the 
Speedwell, arrived at Savannah, in December, 1765, 
bringing a stamp agent and a quantity of stamps, 
about six hundred Georgians gathered and told the 
governor that unless the stamps were removed from 
Savannah they would attack his house and destroy 
them. Governor Wright wisely had the stamps re- 
placed on the Speedwell. Similar outbreaks occurred 
in the other colonies. Parliament, therefore, 
repealed the Stamp Act, but the seed of trouble had 
been sown. Quarrels and misunderstandings fol- 
lowed for ten years, until finally the colonies decided 
to fight for separation from England. In ]J2J^t\t- 
gates from twelve of the colonies met in Philadelphia 
to make plans for united action. This body was 
known as the First Continental Congress. 



History of Georgia 105 

Division in Sentiment in Georgia 

Georgia was not represented at the First Con- 
tinental Congress. The majority of Georgians had 
not decided at that time what course of action ought 
to be taken. There was a very sharp difference of 
opinion as to the necessity of revolution, and it has 
been estimated that nearly half of the Georgia people 
remained faithful to the king. It is important to 
understand the causes of this division in sentiment. 

The Weakness of the Colony 

Georgia was by far the youngest of the thirteen 
colonies, having been settled more than a hundred 
years after Virginia and Massachusetts. As yet in 
her infancy, the province was scarcely strong enough, 
in the opinion of many, for independence. The first 
twenty years were on the whole unsuccessful, and 
while there had been notable progress since the 
resignation of the Trustees, Georgia was still insigni- 
ficant in population when compared w^ith the other 
colonies. Georgia contained 33,000 inhabitants in 
1773; Virginia, 400,000; North Carolina, 230,000, 
and South Carolina, 140,000. The fighting strength 
of the colony was almost negligible — according to 
the governor, only 2,828 able-bodied soldiers. In 
addition to the danger of slave insurrection, Georgia 
was in greater danger from Indian attack than any 
other colony, by reason of her position on the 
southern frontier. The surrounding tribes had 



106 History of Georgia 

10,000 gunmen in 1773, and English agents had 
secured their support in the usual way through 
presents. 

These were very real menaces to the safety of 
Georgians, and, in addition, there was at St. Augus- 
tine a strong British force, against whose advance 
into Georgia little resistance could be made. Georgia 
received a good deal of abuse during the early days 
of the war on account of her backwardness in embrac- 
ing the revolutionary cause. Captain Hugh McCall, 
the first Georgia historian of the war, says: ^'The 
charge of inactivity vanishes when the sword and 
hatchet are held over the heads of the actors to 
compell them to lie still." 

The Older Colonists Royalist in Sentiment 

Aside from these prudential reasons, other factors 
entered into the hesitation of Georgians. The men 
of weight in politics, society and business, were, as a 
rule, the older colonists, some of whom had been 
personal friends of Oglethorpe, and had passed 
through all the earlier vicissitudes of the colony. 
They remembered with lively feelings of gratitude 
the assistance Parliament had extended them in the 
dark days of the rule of the Trustees. Not less than 
half a million dollars had been appropriated for the 
colony by Parliament, aside from large individual 
donations. No other colony had been assisted in the 
same way. While not always approving Parlia- 



History of Georgia 107 

mentary acts touching trade relations, the older 
colonists felt that it would be unpardonable treason 
to revolt against King George III. Such important 
men as James Habersham, Noble Jones and others 
had been so closely associated with the government 
that rebellion was with them out of the question. 

Attitude of the Younger Men 

The younger colonists had, however, no personal 
recollections of these matters. They were irresistibly 
drawn into the struggle, fired by the example of the 
other colonies and dreaming of making an inde- 
pendent nation in the New World. This unfortunate 
division extended even to the point of separating 
families. James Habersham's three sons, James, 
Joseph, and John, were all on the American side, as 
was Noble Wymberley Jones, son of Noble Jones. 

First Revolutionary Meeting in Georgia 

The royalist element in Georgia was ably led by 
Governor James Wright. He was a just and popular 
man and his influence kept many Georgians from 
joining the revolutionists. In spite of his efforts, 
however, a committee of patriots. Noble Wymberley 
Jones, ^ Archibald Bulloch, John Houston and John 



^ Noble Wymberley Jones, son of Oglethorpe's friend, Noble 
Jones, was born in England in 1723. He was, therefore, fifty-one 
years of age at the beginning of the War. He was a physician by 
profession. During all the preliminary agitation, before the Revo- 



108 History of Georgia 

Walton, published a call for a meeting to be held on 
July 27th to discuss the situation. Communications 
were read from revolutionary committees in the other 
colonies. As some of the parishes were not repre- 
sented, it was decided to adjourn until August loth. 
Governor Wright issued a proclamation against 
'^seditious meetings," but the meeting was held and 
spirited resolutions adopted condemning the coercive 
acts that Parliament had passed to punish Massa- 
chusetts. A committee of royalists, of which James 
Habersham, Sr., and Noble Jones were members, 
published in the Savannah Gazette a criticism of the 
patriot assembly's acts, and presently a meeting was 
called of all those who favored the royalist cause. 
About a third of the inhabitants in and near Savan- 
nah attended, and resolutions against agitation were 
passed. 

First Provincial Congress a Failure 

The patriots who met on August loth had not 
thought it wise to send a delegate to the First Con- 

lution had become popular, he worked hard for the American 
cause, serving on all the Committees and being an active member 
of the various Provincial Congresses. He w^as probably respon- 
sible to a larger degree than any other individual for the direction 
of affairs to the time of the fall of Savannah, in 1778. After 
that event, Dr. Jones went to Charleston, where he was cap- 
tured and sent to St. Augustine. After the war, he returned to 
Savannah and resumed the practice of medicine. At seventy-two 
years of age, he presided over the Constitutional Convention of 
1795. He died ten years later. 



History of Georgia 



109 




Noble Wimberley Jones. 
From an engramng lent by Mr. W. J. DeRenne. 



tinental Congress, since, on account of the lack of 
harmony in the colony, no one could claim to repre- 
sent the will of the colony. In January, 1775, a 



110 History of Georgia 

Provincial Congress was convened at Savannah, but 
only five of the twelve parishes sent representatives. 
This shows how strong the royalist feeling was. The 
Congress was, of course, unable to do anything to 
bind the colony, though in spite of the fact that they 
represented only a minority, they appointed dele- 
gates to the Continental Congress. The failure of 
this effort to put Georgia in line with the other 
colonies was very humiliating to the patriots. The 
other colonies could not understand the local troubles, 
and South Carolina had resolved to have no inter- 
course with Georgia. The delegates named to pre- 
sent themselves to the Continental Congress declined, 
under the circumstances, to serve, but wrote a letter 
to the President of the Congress, beginning: ^'The 
unworthy part which the Province of Georgia has 
acted in the great and general contest leaves room to 
expect little less than the censure or even indigna- 
tion of every virtuous man in America." These 
delegates were Noble Wymberley Jones, Archibald 
Bulloch^ and John Houston. 

^Archibald Bulloch was born In South Carolina, In 1730. 
Moving to Georgia with his father In 1750, he soon entered the 
practice of law. He espoused the revolutionary cause, and in 1776 
was president of the successful second Provincial Congress, and 
was by that body chosen "President and Commander-in-Chief of 
Georgia." He was thus the first republican head of our State. 
He would have signed the Declaration of Independence, but was 
kept at home by his duties as President. He died In 1777, shortly 
after the beginning of actual hostilities. He gave promise of a 
career of great usefulness and distinction. 



History of Georgia 111 

Battle of Lexington 

Many Georgians who were hesitating were won 
over to the side of the revolutionists after the Battle 
of Lexington. As long as there was a chance for 
peace, they were opposed to encouraging rebellion, 
but when a definite choice had to be made, they were 
unwilling to fight against their fellow Americans. 
When the news reached Georgia that fighting had 
actually begun, a number of men broke into the 
powder magazine in Savannah and took from it six 
hundred barrels of powder. The leaders in this affair 
were Noble W. Jones, Joseph Habersham, Edward 
Telfair and John Milledge. All of these men became 
prominent. Edward Telfair and John Milledge 
were afterwards governors of the State, and Joseph 
Habersham served as Speaker of the House of Rep- 
resentatives. 

Second Provincial Congress 

In July, 1775, a second Provincial Congress was 
summoned. This time every parish was represented. 
This Congress restored Georgia to the good favor of 
the other colonies, and elected as delegates to the 
Continental Congress John Houston,^ Archibald 

^ John Houston was born in what Is now Burke County, in 
1744. From the first he took an active part in fomenting resist- 
ance to Great Britain. In 1778, he was elected Governor of 
Georgia. In 1784, he was again elected to the governor's chair, 
and it was during his second term that the Charter of the Uni- 
versity of Georgia was granted. He died in 1796. 



112 



History of Georgia 



Bulloch, the Reverend Mr. Zubly, Noble W. Jones 
and Lyman Hall. 

Fall of the Royalist Government 

Feeling that at last a majority of the people were 
with them, the leaders proceeded to wrest control 




Lyman Hall. 
From an engraving lent by Mr. W. J. DeRenne. 

of affairs from the royalists. In August, 1775, the 
militia was purged of royalist officers; the port of 
Savannah was closed to British vessels, and in 
December all the courts were taken over by a Council 
of Safety. This Council was a body of about fifteen 



History of Georgia 113 

leading republicans, created by a public meeting 
held at Savannah in June, 1775. To complete the 
destruction of the royalist government, in January, 
1776, Governor Wright was arrested by Major 
Joseph Habersham. He was confined to his house 
under guard, but in a few weeks escaped to one of 
the king's vessels in the harbor. 

Declaration of Independence 

The Provincial Congress met again in January, 
1776, and chose Lyman HalP, Archibald Bulloch, 
John Houston, Button Gwinnett and George Walton 
as delegates to the Continental Congress. Bulloch 
and Houston were unable to attend the Congress, but 
the other three delegates went to Philadelphia and 
signed the Declaration of Independence on July 
4th, 1776. 

Summary 

The colonies were actuated by two motives in 
rebelling against Great Britain. One was the desire 

^ Lyman Hall was born at Wallfngford, Connecticut, in 1724. 
Being graduated from Yale in 1747, he joined his co-religionists at 
Dorchester, S. C, and when they moved to Georgia, came with 
them and settled on the Midway River in St. John's Parish. This 
parish was strongly in favor of the revolution from the first, and 
many of the leaders of the movement came from that settlement. 
Its name of Liberty County perpetuates the spirit of the Inhabi- 
tants. When Georgia declined in January, 1775, to send delegates 
to the Continental Congress, Lyman Hall went as an independ- 
ent delegate from St. John's Parish. He became Governor of 
Georgia in 1783, and died in 1 790. 



114 History of Georgia 

to get rid of artificial restrictions on their trade; the 
other to secure a larger measure of local self-govern- 
ment. Their resistance to the Stamp Act was not 
due to a feeling that the tax was burdensome, but to 
unwillingness to pay a tax which their own Assem- 
blies had not voted. The revolutionarv movement 
in Georgia was almost wholly a sympathetic one. 
Georgia w^as not a commercial colony and did not, 
therefore, feel greatly hampered by the trade regula- 
tions; and there had been very few conflicts between 
the local assembly and the English government. 
Conscious of no ill treatment, the older colonists, 
some of whom had been personal friends of Ogle- 
thorpe and remembered the assistance given the 
colony during the early years, refused to join the 
patriotic cause. The younger men, however, were 
fired by the example of the patriots in the other 
colonies and ardently joined the revolutionary party. 
The result was that the war in Georgia was peculiarly 
terrible, approaching at times civil war. The Battle 
of Lexington turned many waverers to the patriot 
cause, so that the revolutionists were able to obtain 
control of the colony early in 1776. 

Additional Reading: 

Causes of the Revolution : Evans, L. B., Essential Facts of 
American History, pp. 174-187. Biographical Sketches of N. W. 
Jones, Archibald Bulloch, Lyman Hall, and others mentioned in 
the chapter: Northern, W. J., Men of Mark in Georgia, I. 



CHAPTER X 

THE REVOLUTION, 1778-1783 

Campaigns in South Georgia 

The military activity of the Province of Georgia 
was directed against Florida in the early phase of 
the war. It will be remembered that Florida had 
been ceded to Great Britain in 1763. St. Augustine 
had been strongly fortified and again became a 
menace to the safety of Georgia, just as it was during 
the Spanish War. The southern border of the colony 
was constantly harried by marauding bands of Brit- 
ish, Indians and royalists. Three separate expedi- 
tions were organized against St. Augustine, but, as 
was the case when Oglethorpe tried to take the city, 
all of the attempts ended in failure. Disputes among 
the commanders, inadequate preparations and sick- 
ness prevented any of these invasions from getting 
even as near St. Augustine as the point Oglethorpe 
had reached. 

Fall of Savannah 

In 1778 the British decided to transfer the theatre 
of the war to the South and make an efifort to secure 
control over Georgia and the Carolinas. In pursu- 
ance of this plan. Colonel Archibald Campbell sailed 

115 



116 History of Georgia 

from New York with a heavy force to attack Savan- 
nah. General Augustine Prevost, Commander of 
the British army in Florida, sent two forces to 
cooperate with Campbell, one under Lieutenant- 
Colonel Mark Prevost by land, the other under 
Colonel Fuser, by water. The two were ordered to 
join their forces at Sunbury/ Lieutenant-Colonel 
Prevost entered Georgia on November 19th, 1778, 
taking captive all men found on plantations and 
plundering the people of every article of value. Re- 
sistance was offered near Midway Meeting-House, 
in Liberty County, by Colonel White, General 
Screven and Major James Jackson. General Screven 
was killed, and the small force of Georgians was 
compelled to retreat. Such vigorous preparations for 
defense were made at Ogeechee Ferry, however, that 
Prevost decided to return to Florida. Colonel Fuser, 
coming by water, did not arrive on time, and Prevost 
did not feel strong enough to proceed without him. 
Having desolated the region about Midway, Prevost 
turned his face southward. Late In November Fuser 
reached Sunbury, but not finding Prevost, and being 
unwilling to attack the place without assistance, 
returned to the St. John's River. The failure of 
these expeditions gave Georgia a short breathing 
spell. But on December 6th news reached Savannah 
that Campbell's fleet was on the way from New 

^ See map, p. 50. 



History of Gcorf^'ia 117 

York, and that General Prevost was marching from 
Florida. Campbell reached the Savannah River on 
December 27th, with 2,000 regulars. Major-General 
Howe, commander of the American forces in the 
South, was encamped near Savannah, awaiting 
reinforcements. His entire force numbered only 672 
raw militiamen. He held a council of war and asked 
his officers whether it would be advisable to abandon 
Savannah or resist the attack. He was advised to 
stand by the city to the last. General Howe was not 
a capable commander. He did not choose a good 
position, and left several stragetic points unde- 
fended. He was especially culpable in not having 
defended a private way by which his right could be 
turned, though informed of the path by Colonel 
George Walton. This path was revealed to Camp- 
bell, who immediately saw its importance. He sent 
a force of infantry by this path and was able on 
December 29th to attack Howe both in front and in 
the rear. Completely defeated, the small American 
army retreated up the Savannah and crossed into 
South Carolina. The American loss was eighty- 
three killed and drowned; while thirty-eight officers 
and more than four hundred men were captured. 
The British lost only three men killed and ten 
wounded. For the conduct of this engagement 
General Howe was court-martialed, and, though 
acquitted, his military reputation was never 
recovered. 



118 History of Georgia 



I 



Entering the town of Savannah, the British fear- 
fully abused all patriots, robbing, insulting and im- 
prisoning those who would not join the British side. 

British Conquest of North Georgia 

Leaving a garrison in Savannah, Campbell 
marched up the Savannah and took Ebenezer on 
January 2, 1779. Many Georgians, oppressed in 
every way, returned to their allegiance rather than 
sufifer the destruction of their property, if not the 
loss of their lives. About this time General Prevost 
arrived at Sunbury from St. Augustine, bringing 
some 2,000 men. The town was taken on January 
loth. Prevost then took command of all British 
forces in Georgia. 

Augusta was then the only town remaining in the 
possession of the Americans. About the middle of 
January, Colonel Campbell sent a thousand men to 
take the town. Ineffectual resistance was offered 
by small forces under Colonels John Twiggs, Ben- 
jamin and William Few and General Elbert; and 
when the British reached Augusta, the American 
commander, Brigadier-General Williamson, sur- 
rendered without waiting for an attack. 

Guerrilla War 

Georgia was now completely in the hands of the 
enemy. After the fall of Augusta, the people of 
North Georgia fled towards South Carolina, taking 



History of Georgia 119 

all portable effects. For some time a sort of guer- 
rilla warfare was kept up between more or less inde- 
pendent bands of patriots and the "Tories," as the 
Americans who fought in the British army were 
called. On the American side were to be found 
Colonels Pickens, John Dooly, Elijah Clarke, John 
Twiggs, Captain McCall and others. The Battle of 
Kettle Creek in February was the most important 
engagement, a substantial victory for the Americans. 
In this battle the British force was 600 men, the 
American 400. This success encouraged many 
Georgians to return to the state; troops began to 
gather, the Tories in upper Georgia were routed, and 
Campbell decided to abandon Augusta. 

Battle of Brier Creek 

In March, 1779, General Benjamin Lincoln, who 
had succeeded Howe as commander of the Southern 
Department, determined to move to the assistance 
of Georgia. About 8,000 men were under his com- 
mand. The patriot General Ash, with about 2,300 
men, was encamped at the confluence of Brier Creek 
and the Savannah River. At this poirlt General 
Lincoln arranged to concentrate all available troops 
and begin operations to relieve Georgia. But Gen- 
eral Ash had injudiciously located his camp, had 
taken no precautions to watch the enemy, and had 
weakened his command by sending out too many 
detachments. Before Lincoln reached him, he was 



120 History of Georgia ^H 

m 

attacked and completely defeated by Colonel Prevost. 
This was an unfortunate afifair, as many Americans 
who had begun to pluck up their spirits again | 
despaired of ultimate success, and the projected at- 
tempt to recover Georgia had to be abandoned. 
Many Georgians and Carolinians joined the British 
side. 

French and Americans Attack Savannah 

The French king, who had suffered so many re- 
verses at the hands of England, assisted the Ameri- 
cans in their fight for independence. A fleet was 
sent over under the command of Count d'Estaing! 
In 1779, General Lincoln and d'Estaing made a 
joint attack on Savannah. Lincoln marched frdm 
South Carolina with 2,100 men. His advance guard 
was led by General Lachlan Mcintosh, a Georgian, 
and Count Pulaski, a Polish nobleman. The force 
of Count d'Estaing numbered 4,500 men. Savannah 
was defended by 2,500 British and Tories. The 
forces of Lincoln and d'Estaing were joined on Sep- 
tember i6th, 1779. The French general had un- 
wisely on the day before granted a truce of twenty- 
four hours. Had he attacked at once the British 
could not have defended the city, as their cannon 
were not mounted. In reply to d'Estaing's note 
demanding the surrender of the place, Prevost had 
asked for twenty-four hours, ostensibly to consider 
the matter, really to mount the cannon. During the 



History of Georgia 121 

twenty-four hour truce the cannon were put in posi- 
tion and a considerable reinforcement under Colonel 
Maitland reached the town. 

After besieging the city for about three weeks, a 
grand assault was made on October 9th. The French 
were formed into three columns, led respectively by 
Count d'Estaing, Colonel de Steding and the Vis- 
count de Noailles. The Americans were in two 
columns, one led by Colonel Laurens of South Caro- 
lina, the other by General Mcintosh. General 
Lincoln, by virtue of his rank, commanded the 
reserve; and the cavalry was commanded by Count 
Pulaski. General Isaac Huger, with a force of 500 
men opened the attack on the extreme left — this 
movement being a feint to conceal the main attack. 
The golumns then hurled themselves against the 
breastvMrks with conspicuous dash and bravery, but 
to no pm^ose. The British were skillfully directed 
and their works were too strongly constructed to be 
taken by the attacking armies. On the failure of the 
assault, Lincoln led his force to South Carolina, and 
d'Estaing sailed away. The American loss was 312; 
the French 821. The British lost 40 killed, 63 
wounded, four missing and 48 by desertion. 

Desperate Condition of the Patriots 

The condition of the republicans in Georgia was 
now very distressing. The fall of Charleston, in 
May, 1780, added to the general sense of insecurity. 



122 History of Georgia 

Several brave spirits, Twiggs, Clarke, Dooly, Few, 
Jackson and others kept together small bands of 
Georgians in the northern part of the state, protect- 
ing the inhabitants as best they could from the 
Indians and Tories. Of this sort of warfare, our 
great Georgia historian, Charles C. Jones, says: 
^'Merciless was the war waged between Royalists and 
Republicans. The former, inflamed with hatred and 
eager for rapine, spared neither age nor sex. Ruin 
marked their footsteps, and their presence was a 
signal for theft, torture, murder and crimes without 
a name. Revenge and retaliation prompted the Re- 
publicans to many bloody deeds which can scarcely 
be excused even in a defensive war." 

Turning of the Tide 

By the spring of 178 1 matters began to look 
brighter for the American cause. Several engage- 
ments had been won in North and South Carolina, 
notably at Cowpens in the latter state. General 
Nathanael Greene had succeeded General Lincoln 
as commander of the Southern Department. In 
April he ordered General Pickens and Lieutenant- 
Colonel Lee, known as Light Horse Harry Lee, to 
march on to Augusta. The place was already being 
invested by forces under James Jackson and Elijah 
Clarke. The town surrendered on June 5, 1781, and" 
Major Jackson was placed in charge of the fort. 

The capture of Augusta placed the northern 



History of Georgia 123 

counties of Georgia in the hands of the Republicans. 
The following January General Anthony Wayne 
came to Georgia to take command. The British 
were gradually forced southward, fort after fort was 
taken, the enemy was eventually shut up in Savan- 
nah, and the town surrounded. Supplies were cut 
off and a regular siege was begun. This was the situa- 
tion of affairs when news of the cessation of the war 
came. Governor Wright notified General Wayne 
that peace had been made; terms of surrender were 
agreed upon, and Savannah was evacuated on July 
nth, 1782, the keys of the city being delivered to 
James Jackson. 

Political Affairs During the War 

Mention has already been made of the Council 
of Safety, which was a committee of revolutionists 
formed in June, 1775. It was a sort of executive 
head of the revolutionary movement until a regular 
government could be devised. This Council purged 
the militia of royalists, raised troops, conducted the 
courts and took over the duties formerly exercised 
by Governor Wright. 

In April, 1776, a Provincial Congress of delegates 
from the several parishes prepared a temporary con- 
stitution. This constitution provided for a ^'President 
and Commander-in-Chief," to be elected by the 
Provincial Congress, for six months. The Council 
of Safety was continued, and was made to consist of 



124 History of Georgia 

thirteen persons, in addition to the five delegates to 
the Continental Congress. The President was re- 
quired to consult this Council and follow its advice 
in all official matters. Archibald Bulloch was the 
first President and Commander-in-Chief. On his 
death Button Gwinnett^ was appointed by the Coun- 
cil to fill the position until a regular election could 
be made by the Provincial Congress. 

The First Constitution of Georgia, 1777 

After the Declaration of Independence a Consti- 
tution was adopted, the first constitution of Georgia 
as a sovereign State. When the authority of the 
British government was cast ofT, it became necessary 
for the people themselves to draw up a document, 
containing the form of government and the laws 

^Button Gwinnett was born in England about 1732. As a 
young man he emigrated to South Carolina, but soon moved over 
into Georgia. For a short while he engaged in mercantile affairs 
in Savannah, but eventually became a farmer in St. John's Par- 
ish. Espousing the popular cause, he was made a member of 
the Provincial Congress in 1776 and was named a delegate to the 
Continental Congress the same year. On the death of Archibald 
Bulloch in 1777, Gwinnett became President and Commander-in- 
Chief of Georgia. He was a candidate for Governor at the first 
election held under the Constitution of 1777, but the Assembly 
passed him by and elected Treutlen. General Lachlan Mcin- 
tosh, with whom Gwinnett had had some differences, openly ex- 
pressed his pleasure at the result of the election. This angered 
Gwinnett and he challenged Mcintosh to a duel. Gwinnett was 
killed. General Mcintosh was indicted, tried, and acquitted, but 
Gwinnett's friends felt very bitterly over the affair and a serious 
division was caused in the Republican ranks. 



History of Georgia 



12d 




Button Gwinnett. 
From an engraving lent by Mr. fV. J. DeRenne. 



126 History of Georgl 



S[i(i 



under which they desired to live and be governed. 
The adopting of a constitution is the highest func- 
tion of a self-governing people. A republican form 
of government was created, with an elective leg"isla- 
ture and a governor and council. 

The Legislature 

The duty of law-making was entrusted to a legis- 
lature of one house, consisting of representatives 
annually elected by the people. Representation was 
distributed among the counties in accordance with 
their relative importance. The small counties of 
Glynn and Camden were given one representative 
each; the large county of Liberty had fourteen mem- 
bers, and each of the other counties ten. In addition 
to the county members, the town of Savannah was 
given four representatives, and Sunbury two. Rep- 
resentatives had to be not less than twenty-one years 
of age and possess two hundred and fifty acres of 
land or other property to the value of two hundred 
and fifty pounds. All male white inhabitants not 
less than twenty-one years of age who owned as much 
as ten pounds worth of property were permitted to 
vote. Mechanics were exempted from the property 
qualification. An interesting provision was the 
authorization of a fine for failure to vote. 

Governor and Council 

The executive function was placed in the hands of 
a governor and council, both being elected by the 



History of Georgia 127 

assembly of representatives. The governor and coun- 
cil held office for one year. During the sessions 
of the assembly the members of the council were 
required to be present in order to suggest amend- 
ments to proposed laws, but the assembly might dis- 
regard such amendments. Both governor and coun- 
cil were thus under the control of the elected 
representatives of the people, whereas under the 
royal government the governor wielded practically 
autocratic power. 

Parishes Become Counties 

The twelve parishes of Georgia were made by this 
constitution into eight counties, called Wilkes, Rich- 
mond, Burke, Effingham, Chatham, Glynn, Camden 
and Liberty. Liberty County was so called on ac- 
count of the ardent revolutionary sentiment of the 
people of Sunbury and its neighborhood; the other 
names are those of distinguished Englishmen who 
took the part of the colonies in the various disputes 
leading up to the Revolution. 

Other Provisions of the Constitution 

The Constitution also guaranteed the right of 
habeas corpus, freedom of the press, religious tolera- 
tion and trial by jury. The legislature was required 
to establish in each county schools to be supported at 
the general expense of the state. 



128 History of Georgia 

John Adam Treutlen 

John Adam Treutlen was elected governor under 
this constitution in May, 1777. He is, therefore, the 
first governor of Georgia as an independent state. 

On the fall of Savannah in 1778, Augusta was 
made the capital, and when Augusta was threatened, 
the seat of government was located at Heard's Fort, 
now Washington, in Wilkes County. As practically 
the entire state was then in the hands of the British, 
there was really no need for a formally organized 
government. Governor Wright, in the meantime, 
had reestablished the royal government at Savannah 
and continued to exercise his powers there until the 
final surrender of the city. There were thus two 
separate sets of officials in Georgia, one representing 
the people, the other the English king. 

When the British abandoned Augusta, in 1781, 
the capital was again removed to that town. An 
assembly was convened and Dr. Nathan Brownson 
was elected governor. At the election of 1782 John 
Martin became governor. During his administration 
the war closed, and Savannah again became the 
capital. 

Summary 

The main events of the Revolutionary War in 
Georgia are the two battles of Savannah. In both 
these engagements the Americans were defeated. The 
other two battles of importance were those at Kettle 



History of Georgia 125) 

Creek and Brier Creek, the former a victory for the 
revolutionists, the latter for the British and Tories. 
The war in Georgia was peculiarly cruel and 
destructive because Georgians were so evenly divided 
between allegiance to the British and to the Ameri- 
can cause. A constitutional form of government was 
put into operation as soon as the royalists were over- 
thrown. This government exercised authority 
wherever the patriots were dominant, but over most 
of the state from 1778 to 1782 the royalist govern- 
ment, represented by Governor Wright, was in 
control. 

A dditional R eadijig : 

Stories of interesting persons and incidents in Georgia during 
the war: Harris, Joel Chandler, Stories of Georgia, pp. 57-114, 
Robert Sallette, Paddy Carr, Nancy Hart, Elijah Clarke, James 
Jackson. 



CHAPTER XI 

GEORGIA ENTERS THE FEDERAL UNION, 

1783-1789 

The Articles of Confederation 

When the colonies threw off their allegiance to 
England, they became, in the words of the Declara- 
tion of Independence, "free and independent states,'' 
with no bond of union between them. Each was free 
to establish her own laws and form of government 
without considering the opinion of the other states. 
But realizing the strength of union, the colonies had 
banded together for the purpose of fighting Great 
Britain. The document which contained the form 
of government of the confederated states was known 
as the Articles of Confederation. Some of the states 
were so jealous of their independence that they hesi- 
tated a long time before entering into the union; 
indeed, it was only near the close of the Revolution, 
in 178 1, that all the states had accepted the Articles. 

Defects of the Confederacy 

The government instituted by the Articles of Con- 
federation proved hopelessly inadequate for a 
national life. All the powers given up by the indi- 
vidual states were lodged in the hands of a Congress. 

130 



History of Georgia 131 

This Congress consisted of delegates from the several 
states and as each state was allowed one vote, 
tiny Rhode Island had as much weight as great Vir- 
ginia or Massachusetts. No important legislation 
could be enacted without the affirmative vote of nine 
of the thirteen states. Congress could levy no 
taxes, but was limited to calling on the states for 
contributions, each state reserving to itself the right 
to levy all taxes. Congress was wholly without power 
to compel the obedience of a state to the national 
law. Another fundamental weakness lay in the lack 
of Congressional control over commerce. Each state 
levied its own customs duties, and tariff wars among 
them were common. 

Under this weak government the states lived for 
several years after the close of the Revolution, and 
all the time the country was drifting towards bank- 
ruptcy and anarchy. 

A Stronger Form of Government Necessary 

The only remedy for these conditions lay in the 
creation of a new form of government, endowed with 
enough power to cope with the difficulties which 
confronted the nation. Accordingly, in May, 1787, 
a great convention of delegates from the states met 
in Philadelphia. The strongest minds in America 
were present, Washington, Franklin, Hamilton, 
Madison, Randolph and many others. Georgia 
elected as delegates William Pierce, William Hous- 



132 History of Georgia 

ton, William Few, Abraham Baldwin, George Wal- 
ton and Nathaniel Pendleton. The last two did not 
attend, and only Few and Baldwin signed the Con- 
stitution. 

The Virginia delegates thought that the prime 
defect in the existing order of things lay in the fact 
that Congress represented not the people, but the 
states, and they therefore proposed the creation of 
a new congress to consist of a lower house, the mem- 
bers of which should be elected by the people direct- 
ly; and an upper house to be elected by the lower 
house. Had this measure been adopted it would 
have entirely destroyed the participation in the 
government of any state as such, and would have 
made the states into a centralized nation. The small 
states opposed the plan, because as representation in 
the lower house would be based on population, their 
influence would be as nothing when compared with 
that of the great states. 

First Compromise of the Constitution 

In order to protect the interests of the small states 
the "Connecticut Compromise" was introduced, by 
which it was proposed to have Congress consist of 
a lower house elected by the people, and an upper 
house in which the states should be equally repre- 
sented. The voting on this question was very excit- 
ing. Rhode Island having refused to take part in the 
convention, and New Hampshire having no dele- 



History of Georgia 133 

gates present at the time the vote on the Compromise 
was taken, there were only eleven states represented. 
The vote of the states was taken in this way. The 
delegates from each state took a vote among them- 
selves to determine the attitude of that state, each 
state having one vote. The roll of states was then 
called, beginning with the oldest. Ten states had 
voted and the vote stood a tie when Georgia's turn 
came. It was a most critical moment. Georgia's 
vote was expected to be against the Connecticut Com- 
promise, as Georgia had consistently voted with the 
states desiring a strong national government. But 
one of the two Georgia delegates present, Abraham 
Baldwin^ was convinced that failure to accept the 



^ Abraham Baldwin was one of the most conspicuous and val- 
uable men in the state during the early years of the Union. He 
came to Savannah at the close of the Revolutionary War, where 
he was admitted to the bar. He at once impressed himself on 
the people, and three months after his arrival was elected to the 
legislature from Chatham. Georgians are indebted to him not 
only for his invaluable services in the Constitutional Convention 
of 1787, but for his leadership in the establishment of the Uni- 
versity of Georgia. It is an undoubted fact that he first pro- 
posed the founding of the institution, and it is probable that he 
actually wrote the charter. At any rate, he became the first 
President, though he was only nominally at the head of the insti- 
tution, since it was sixteen years after the granting of the charter 
before the college was opened to students. Baldwin then resigned 
his nominal presidency in favor of Professor Meigs whose ser- 
vices Baldwin had secured. Both Baldwin and Meigs were gradu- 
ated from Yale. Baldwin became United States Senator In 1801, 
and was President pro tempore of the Senate for two years. 



134 History of Georgia 

Compromise might mean the disruption of the con- 
vention. He therefore refused to follow William 
Few in voting against the Compromise, and in this 
way divided the vote of Georgia. The historian, 
John Fiske, has paid this tribute to Baldwin's action: 
"It was Abraham Baldwin, a native of Connecticut 
and lately a tutor in Yale College, a recent emigrant 
to Georgia, who thus divided the vote of that state, 
and prevented a decision which would in all proba- 
bility have broken up the convention. His state was 
the last to vote, and the house was hushed in anxious 
expectation, when this brave and wise young man 
yielded his private conviction to what he saw to be 
the paramount necessity of keeping the convention 
together. All honor to his memory!'" 

The principle of the Compromise was adopted 
some days later. 

In casting her vote with the large states, however, 
on many disputed questions the delegates from 
Georgia appear to have had the backing of her 
people. The explanation of this fact is that with 
the large extent of our territory, Georgians felt that 
in time the state would take rank with the great 
states. 

The Second Compromise 

The adoption of the Connecticut Compromise was 
the most important act performed by the convention, 

^ Fiske, John, Critical Period of American History, p. 251. 



History of Georgia 135 

but much remained to be done. The first struggle 
was between the large and small states. The second 
was between the slave and free states. In apportion- 
ing, according to population, the number of repre- 
sentatives of the several states in the lower house 
of Congress, the free states were unwilling that the 
slaves in the South should be counted. They claimed 
that negroes were property, not persons, while the 
Southern delegates insisted that the negroes should 
be reckoned as part of the population. A similar 
question had arisen during the war. Money for the 
army had been raised by requisition on the states 
in proportion to their population. At that time the 
North had maintained that the slaves were persons, 
and that the South's pro rata of money should be 
reckoned on the whole population, white and black. 
The South on the other hand had claimed that slaves 
were property only and not persons. It is clear that 
self-interest colored the views of both sections at both 
times. The dispute had been settled by counting 
a slave as three-fifths of a person in estimating the 
population for purposes of taxation; and now, in 
1787, this former compromise was adopted; so that 
until the Civil War, in estimating the number 
of representatives from the South in Congress, the 
negroes helped to swell the Southern representation 
and gave her a disproportionate voice in the govern- 
ment of the country. 



136 Histoiy of Georgia 

The Third Compromise 

The third compromise of the Constitution involved 
congressional control over commerce and the aboli- 
tion of the slave trade. All the states except South 
Carolina and Georgia desired to prohibit the im- 
portation of any more negroes from Africa; the New 
England states were very anxious to give Congress 
control over commerce. The South, opposed to mak- 
ing an unreserved surrender in this matter, advocated 
requiring a two-thirds vote of both houses before 
any measure affecting commerce should become law. 
They feared that the New England States would get 
a monopoly of the carrying trade and impose ruin- 
ous freight rates for transporting their rice and 
indigo to Europe; as well as enact tariff legislation 
hostile to the interests of purely agricultural states. 
Here was good material for a compromise. New 
Hampshire, Massachusetts and Connecticut voted to 
prolong the slave trade for twenty years, and Georgia 
and South Carolina supported Congressional control 
over commerce. 

Only the details now remained to be worked out, 
the three great questions having been settled by com- 
promise. Later In the year, the Federal Constitution 
was placed before the people of the states for adop- 
tion or rejection. Georgia, on January 2, 1788, In a 
convention at Augusta, ratified the Instrument, be- 
ing the fourth state so to do. 



History of Georiria 137 

New State Constitution, 1789 

Constitutional conventions met in Georgia in 1788 
and 1789 for the purpose of making a new constitu- 
tion that would harmonize with the Federal Consti- 
tution. The constitution of 1777 had been hastily 
made and was considered unsatisfactory. Its pro- 
visions were drawn up while the people were yet 
strongly under the influence of colonial ideas. The 
new constitution of 1789 was a more systematic docu- 
ment and more democratic in its tendencies. The 
governor's council established in 1777 was dropped 
and a second house called the Senate added to 
the legislature, to consist of one member from 
each county, elected by popular vote. The property 
qualification for the suffrage was dropped, that for 
membership in the lower house reduced from 250 to 
200 acres, and the qualification of senators was fixed 
at 250 acres. The method of selecting the governor 
was changed. In 1777 he had been elected by the 
lower house of the assembly. Now the lower house 
suggested three names to the senate, which chose 
one of them as governor. 

Constitution of 1798 

The third of the state constitutions is one of great 
importance. The men who directed the work of the 
convention represented the highest ability of the 
state. Among the delegates were Jared Irwin, 
James Jackson, Thomas Spalding, Peter J. Carnes, 



138 History of Georgia ^H 

Robert Watkins and Benjamin Taliaferro. So 
well was their work done that Georgians lived 
under this constitution until the Civil War. The 
cumbersome method of electing the governor was 
replaced by the simpler plan of having the two 
houses of the assembly meet in joint session for that 
purpose. Property qualifications for the governor, 
senators and representatives were lowered, but not 
abandoned. No one was eligible for the governor's 
seat who did not possess five hundred acres of 
land and four thousand dollars' worth of prop- 
erty. This constitution established an adequate 
system of courts. The African slave trade was 
abolished. Under the Federal Constitution the slave 
trade might have been continued until 1808; and it 
is interesting to have this evidence of the decline of 
the importance of slavery before the wholesale plant- 
ing of cotton began. The passage of slaves across 
the ocean in the holds of ships, with the slow rate 
of speed, and the inhumanity of the skippers, was 
a very horrible thing; and public sentiment all over 
the Union, South as well as North, was against it. 

The Constitution of 1798, as well as that of 1789, 
provided for habeas corpus, trial by jury, freedom 
of the press, and religious toleration. 

Summary 

After declaring their independence of Great 
Britain, the thirteen colonies entered into a loose 



History of Georgia 139 

form of union under a constitution known as the 
Articles of Confederation; but after a few years a 
demand arose for a stronger government. A new 
Constitution was, therefore, made in 1787 by a con- 
vention summoned to suggest amendments to the 
existing constitution, and was adopted by all the 
states. This Federal Constitution is the one under 
which we now live. The state of Georgia adopted 
two new constitutions before the close of the century, 
one in 1789, the other in 1798. The Constitution 
of 1777 had been hastily made during the Revolu- 
tion, and many of its provisions were unsatisfactory. 



CHAPTER XII 

SETTLEMENT OF MIDDLE AND NORTH 
GEORGIA, 1 782-1800 

Desolate Condition of Georgia dl^l 

The dawn of peace found Georgia in a prostrate 
condition. The more important towns, Savannah, Sun- 
bury, Ebenezer, and Augusta, were almost in ruins. 
Agriculture and commercial operations had been 
abandoned; hundreds of people had left the state; 
many negro slaves had fled or been taken away by 
royalists; churches and schools were closed; there 
were no courts nor judges. The hand of war bore 
peculiarly hard on Georgia because of the fratricidal 
nature of the struggle in this state. 

Recuperation 

But the recovery began at once, and in a very 
short time the ravages of war were repaired. The 
planters in the low country about Savannah were 
soon pursuing their former lives and occupations. 
In North Georgia suffering was especially great be- 
cause the settlements were new and there were no 
well established and populous communities. 



140 



History of Georgia 141 

Immigration from Virginia and the Carolinas 

With the cessation of hostilities, a remarkable im- 
migration of settlers set in from the states to the 
north of Georgia. The seaboard settlements were 
made by Europeans; but the settlers of Middle and 
North Georgia were native Americans, moving 
southward in search of new lands. Virginia, Mary- 
land, North Carolina and South Carolina all 
contributed to people the vacant territory of our state. 
This movement had begun a score of years before 
the Revolutionary War. As soon as slavery was 
allowed and the early restrictions on land tenure were 
removed in 1750, the rich lands of Georgia became 
irresistibly attractive to settlers, and Georgia's wise 
policy of granting land free to actual settlers brought 
thousands of immigrants. The records of the Gov- 
ernor and Council for a number of years after the 
resignation of the Trustees in 1752 are largely a 
record of land grants. The first immigrants came 
principally into St. George's parish, now cut up into 
Burke, Jefferson and Screven Counties. 

Wilkes County Settled. Head Rights 

Need for more land was soon felt, and in 1763 and 
1773 Governor Wright obtained several cessions of 
land from the Indians. The most important of these 
tracts was the land lying around the Broad and Little 
Rivers. The Constitution of 1777 named this land 
Wilkes County. Two hundred acres of land were 



142 History of Georgia 

offered to each head of a family settling in Georgia. 
This method of granting lands was known as the 
Head Rights system. In addition to the two hundred 
acres, fifty acres were given for each child and each 
slave owned by the head of the family, provided 
that no grantee was to have rights for more than ten 
negroes. Subsequent amendments modified the law 
so as to prevent too much land going to one person 
and to prohibit people from getting land grants and 
not coming to settle. Immigrants poured into the 
Broad and Little River country in a steady stream, 
a movement which was not checked during the early 
years of the War, for the reason that North Georgia 
was far from the scene of conflict. In 1779, how- 
ever, when the British invaded North Georgia, a 
temporary check came; the new settlements were in 
many cases entirely destroyed and a large number of 
people fled into Carolina. 

After 1782 the flood of immigration was again 
turned toward Georgia. Wilkes County was settled 
with marvellous rapidity. The first census, 1790, 
revealed the interesting fact that of the 82,000 
Georgians, 36,000 lived in that county alone. 

Franklin and Washington Counties Settled 

Before the end of the century another large body 
of land was made available. The Cherokees and 
Creeks took the part of the British in the war and 
committed many crimes against life and property. In 



History of Gior([ia • l-t3 

1783 a raid was organized against them and they 
were compelled to cede a tract of land lying about 
the sources of the Oconee. This tract was divided 
by the Legislature in 1784 into two counties, the 
northernmost being named for Franklin, the south- 
ern for Washington. Immigrants were invited. 
One thousand acres of land was set as the limit for 
each family, and a price of three shillings per acre 
was put on the land. This price discouraged immi- 
gration, and the following year the law was amended 
so as to require payment only for each acre in excess 
of one thousand acres granted to each family. 

This land also filled rapidly. The source of 
immigration was the Scotch-Irish^ settlements in the 



^ The Scotch-Irish were descended from a colony of Scotch 
Presbyterians, who were settled in Ulster, North Ireland, in the 
seventeenth century. The colony of Protestants was planted there 
to offset the Catholic element, or native Irish. There were some 
intermarriages between the Scotch and the Irish, but on the whole 
the two peoples kept apart. The Scotch of North Ireland pros- 
pered. Soon their flourishing manufactories of linen and woolen 
goods aroused the jealousy of English merchants and at the close 
of the century their industry was crippled by adverse legislation. 
Added to their economic troubles, religious persecution came in 
the early years of the eighteenth century. They were forbidden 
to keep schools, marriages performed by their clergy were declared 
illegal, and they were deprived of the right to hold office. These 
persecutions led to wholesale emigration to America. Between 
1730 and 1770, a half million of them came to this country. The 
Scotch-Irish were about one-sixth of the total population of the 
colonies at the time of the Revolution. Such men as Andrew 
Jackson, John C. Calhoun and Stonewall Jackson were of Scotch- 
Irish descent. 



144 History of Georgia 

Carolinas. The population of North and Middle 
Georgia soon exceeded that of South Georgia, and 
the seat of government was moved to Louisville, in 
Jefferson County in 1796; but this proving an un- 
healthy place, the capital was fixed at the new town 
of Milledgeville in 1807. 

Character of Immigrants 

Burke is the oldest of the counties peopled by 
immigrants from the states to the north of Georgia. 
Indeed, there were a few settlers in that county before 
Oglethorpe came. One George Galphin, a famous 
Indian trader, is known to have had, at a very early 
date, a trading station on the Ogeechee River. At 
the time of the Revolution Burke was thickly 
settled. Whence these immigrants came is uncer- 
tain, as the county records have been destroyed; but 
the names of some of the early settlers have come 
down to us and they indicate that Virginians and 
North Carolinians in early times probably found 
their way into the county. 

Our knowledge of Wilkes County is quite full and 
its history may be taken as typical of the development 
of the middle Georgia counties. The earliest comers 
to any new country are usually a hardy class of men, 
in humble circumstances, men fitted by nature for 
the hardships of frontier life, and caring little for 
the comforts of civilization. Many such people came 
to Wilkes County just before the Revolutionary War. 



History of Georgia 145 

Their lives were very hard. Cut off from communi- 
cation v^ith the world by almost impassable forests, 
with none but savages for neighbors, constantly in 
danger of Indian forays, these people set to work 
to make homes for themselves. Their first houses 
were log cabins with dirt floors; their clothes and 
shoes were made at home; game, milk and bread 
constituted their fare. 

This pioneer class of men was followed shortly 
after the war by people in better circumstances, 
usually Virginians. The pioneers moved from the 
older communities because the wealthy people 
absorbed their lands. Tobacco planting was the prin- 
cipal industry of the Virginian planters; their lands 
becoming exhausted they moved on after the pioneers. 
Tobacco exhausts the soil very quickly, and the people 
of the older communities were suffering from land 
hunger. The Virginians settled on Broad River, in 
that part of Wilkes County which was laid off in 
1790 as Elbert County. This was the largest settle- 
ment, but many Virginians were scattered through- 
out that part of Georgia. The historian, Geo. G. 
Smith, says: "These Broad River people were well- 
to-do, brought with them from their homes a few 
negroes and such furniture as could be brought in 
wagons, and their live stock. They found excellent 
land and a fine range and were soon independent, and 
many of them became quite wealthy. They were 
people of great worth, and their descendants have 



146 History of Georgia 

been distinguished for their public services."^ The 
Virginians brought with them a great deal of state 
pride. They were spoken of for many years as "the 
Virginia settlement." Some of the best known 
Georgia families came in those years from Virginia, 
among them the Crawfords, Gilmers, Lewises, 
Mathews, Jordans and Barnetts. Among the North 
Carolinians we find the Clarkes, Waltons and 
Campbells. 

Franklin and Washington Counties were settled 
largely by Scotch-Irish people, from the Anderson 
district of South Carolina, and North Carolina. 
They were a fine stock, thrifty, frugal and 
independent. 

Two Nuclei of Growth in Georgia 

It is thus clear that Georgia has developed from 
two centers, one about the seaboard, where emigrants 
from Europe settled — English, Scotch, Irish, French, 
Germans, Swiss; the other, in North and Middle 
Georgia, where the land was occupied by Americans 
coming from the older states. From the latter 
nucleus are descended the bulk of present day 
Georgians. 

Society in the Early Nineteenth Century 

There was a sharp division between the two 
centers of population. On the coast, society was 



^ Smith, George G., Story of Georgia and the Georgia People, 
p. 140. 



History of Georgia 147 

more mature. In the planter class, wealthy in land 
and slaves, education and culture were the rule. But 
there was a large element of poorer people, living in 
the pine woods of the frontier. They were as far 
removed from the planter class as possible, in point 
of property, culture and ambition. 

In North and Middle Georgia society was more 
homogeneous in the early part of the nineteenth 
century. The Virginians formed a society among 
themselves, it is true, but there was not so great a 
distinction between the planter and the pioneer class 
as existed on the seaboard. Class distinction emerged 
later as cotton culture on a large scale was intro- 
duced. The people of the seaboard followed the 
usual social customs of English people of that day. 
Clothes, wines and luxuries of all sorts were im- 
ported direct from Europe. In the upper part of 
the state society was somewhat more primitive. There 
were few books and education was rare. The young 
people found their principal amusement in dancing. 
The boys and men raced horses, shot for prizes, 
fought at the court house on Saturday, and drank 
whiskey somewhat freely. Governor Gilmer, who 
was born in the Broad River settlement, in 1790, 
has left this account of the North Carolina element 
in Wilkes County: ''AH work, little play, no fruit, 
poor eating, thin clothing, open houses, hard beds, 
and few blankets, made children hardy or killed 
them. No novels, pianos, or idleness filled the heads 



148 History of Georgia ^H 

of the girls with vain imaginings. The singing at 
the meeting houses of the primitive Baptists tempted 
but few to attend for the sake of the melody. The 
great pleasure indulged in by the young people was 
dancing at night. The married women sought recrea- 
tion from their six days' work by visiting their 
neighbors on Sunday. The men went to musters, 
shooting matches and horse races on Saturdays. 
Housekeepers treated their friends and their own 
families to a pudding for dinner when company 
came, and the man of the house drew forth his 
bottle of whiskey. . . . The preacher and the school- 
master, the first to commence the onward march of 
civilization, were very slow in reaching outskirt 
settlements. Most who did were drunken Irishmen 
or dissolute Virginians, who found the restraints of 
society in the old countries too binding for their 
comfort, and, therefore, moved to the new. News- 
papers were confined to the select few. It appears 
from the record of the court of Ordinary of Wilkes 
County that five out of sixteen wills had the makers' 
mark put to them instead of their signature."^ 

Industry 

The planters of the coast produced rice and corn 
in large quantities. Slaves were very numerous; 
large plantations were the rule. In North Georgia 

^ Gilmer, Geo. R., Georgians, p. 179. 



History of Georgia 149 

stockraising was for a number of years the principal 
industry. As soon as sufficient land could be cleared, 
tobacco became the staple commodity. The Vir- 
ginians had been tobacco planters at home and had 
been originally attracted to Georgia because the fields 
looked suitable for this form of agriculture. The 
North Georgians also produced practically every- 
thing they used, cattle, hogs, wheat, corn, and cotton 
for home manufacture. It was a day of small farms 
in that section, and diversified agriculture was 
prevalent. 

Indians 

The Indians were a constant menace to the frontier 
settlements. They stole cattle, cut off and murdered 
isolated planters, and made living on the borders 
perilous for many years. An early law required 
the men to carry arms to church. The story of the 
expulsion of the Indians will be related in another 
chapter. 

Summary 

Georgia recuperated rapidly from the desolation 
that accompanied the Revolution. A steady stream 
of Virginians and Carolinians poured into the state 
for twenty years after peace was restored. These 
people settled on the lands acquired at intervals from 
the Indians. The new counties of Wilkes, Washing- 
ton, and Franklin filled quickly. Wilkes County 



150 History of Georgia 

in 1790 had a population almost equal to that of the 
remainder of Georgia. The newcomers were given 
lands under a Head Rights system, by which the 
amount of land an individual might obtain depended 
upon the size of his family and the number of slaves 
he brought. Society was crude, educational facili- 
ties poor, luxuries rare. The farmers depended upon 
their own acres for practically everything they used. 
The Virginian element of the immigrants were in 
better circumstances than the other North Georgians. 
They had belonged to the planter class in Virginia 
and came to Georgia in search of fresh tobacco 
lands. 

On the coast, society was older and more refined. 
There were greater differences between the several 
classes than was the case in North Georgia. Rice 
growing was the leading interest of the coast 
farmers. 



CHAPTER XIII 

THE YAZOO LAND FRAUD, 1795-1814 

Boundary Troubles 

Disputes over boundaries were a fruitful source 
of trouble in Georgia from the beginning of the 
colony to the close of the eighteenth century. The 
colony had had to fight for its very existence when 
Spain attempted to enforce her claim that Georgia 
had been established on Spanish territory. The 
Spanish menace was removed from our southern 
border in 1763, when Florida was ceded to Great 
Britain. At that time the southern boundary of the 
province was fixed at the St. Mary's River. 

South Carolina Claim 

This extension of the territory of Georgia to the 
St. Mary's was protested by South Carolina. The 
charter boundary of South Carolina covered all the 
country as far south as the St. Mary's. Georgia was, 
therefore, carved out of South Carolina, and as 
Georgia's charter boundary had been fixed at the 
Altamaha River, South Carolina had some ground 
for claiming that the land between the Altamaha and 
the St. Mary's had never left her possession. South 
Carolina abandoned her claim at a conference be- 
tween the tw^o states held at Beaufort in 1789. 

151 



152 History of Georgia 

Claims of Spain, the United States and Georgia to West 
Florida 

When England acquired Florida from Spain, in 
1763, she divided that province into two parts, called 
East Florida and West Florida, and fixed as the 
northern boundary of West Florida a line drawn 
from the mouth of the Yazoo River, a tributary of 
the Mississippi, eastward to the Chattahoochee 
River. The territory north of West Florida to a 
line drawn from the headwaters of the Savannah to 
the Mississippi was claimed by Georgia. 

The West Florida region became a bone of con- 
tention at the close of the Revolution. During the 
course of that memorable struggle Spain seized the 
opportunity to reconquer Florida from Great 
Britain, but in the treaty of peace ceding Florida 
back to Spain, England fixed the northern boundary 
of the cession at the 31st parallel, instead of sur- 
rendering the entire province of West Florida. All 
of the territory north of the 31st parallel was ceded 
to the United States. Spain was dissatisfied with 
this arrangement and refused to acknowledge the 
title of the United States to the part of West Florida 
under dispute. Georgia also put in a claim to this 
territory, it being the custom of the states to claim 
possession of all western lands lying between exten- 
sions of their northern and southern boundaries. The 
general government disputed Georgia's contention 
on the ground that this western land had been con- 



History of Georg'in 15,') 

quered by the nation as a whole and ought to belong 
to the United States. 

The dispute between the United States and Spain 
as to the West Florida boundary became the subject 
matter of treaty negotiations between the two 
nations, and it was for several years uncertain what 
the result of the negotiations would be; but in 1791; 
Spain relinquished her claim to the land north of 
the 31st parallel. Georgia then asserted her owner- 
ship of the immense region between the Chattahoo- 
chee and the Mississippi. 

First Yazoo Sale 

This great western domain was the occasion of a 
very striking incident in the history of Georgia, 
known as the Yazoo Fraud. There was a great rush 
of people to the West after the Revolution. As it 
was inconvenient and dangerous for settlers to go 
singly, an excellent opportunity was opened for land 
speculators to get control of large bodies of land, 
organize companies of people who desired to migrate, 
and thus secure permanence and safety to the new 
settlements, incidentally making huge profits on the 
land sold to the settlers. In 1789 four land com- 
panies were organized for the purpose of buying 
from Georgia parts of the western territory. The 
land which they desired to obtain was in the 
neighborhood of the Yazoo River, and on that 
account the companies were called Yazoo Companies. 



154 History of Georgia 



i 



As the United States government claimed all of the 
western territory, and as Spain was in actual pos- f' 
session of part of the Yazoo land, it was an easy 
matter to persuade the Georgia legislature to sell 
what claim the state had in the land. Hence the 
Yazoo Companies succeeded in getting deeds to 
14,400,000 acres for an insignificant price, $207,580. 

Failure of the Sale 

The act making this grant provided that credit 
should be given for two years, but that on failure to 
pay at the expiration of that time, the grants should 
lapse. No provision was made as to what sort of 
money the state would require, but when the com- 
panies tendered worthless paper money, the Treas- 
urer refused to accept it, with the result that the 
grants of 1789 came to nothing. 

Second Yazoo Sale, 1795 

But so great were the profits to be realized from 
this sort of speculation that the promoters kept at 
work. President Washington discountenanced the 
sale of western lands to settlement promoters, on the 
ground that the states had no right to sell lands in 
the possession of the Indians without first buying 
their rights, and because it was feared that colonies 
planted so close to New Orleans might come under 
the control of Spain. There was a great deal of 
dissatisfaction at that time among the Americans who 



History of Georgia 



155 




15G History of Geoi\^ia 



^ 



had settled on the Mississippi River, on account of 
the fact that Spain controlled the Mississippi and 
would not allow them to use the stream for their 
commerce. Indeed, Spain tried to detach the 
western settlements from their allegiance to the 
United States by offering to give them the right to 
use the river, if they would become Spanish subjects. 
In spite of these objections, however, in 1795 four 
new land companies made a concerted ef^fort to 
secure possession of western land. James Gunn, a 
United States Senator from Georgia, was the leader 
of the movement. The scheme was entirely success- 
ful. The legislature granted to the companies 40,- 
000,000 acres of land, for about $500,000. In each 
case a part of the purchase money was to be deposited 
before the passage of the act, and payment of the 
remainder was required before November i, 1795. 
The state gave no guarantee against Spanish claims 
and was not to be held responsible for peace with the 
Indians. 

Bribery of the Legislature 

It seems clear that the legislature was bribed to 
make this sale. It was a small body of twenty sena- 
tors and thirty-four representatives. Ten senators 
voted for the measure, eight against it; in the house, 
nineteen voted aye, ten voted no. It was believed 
that only one honest vote was cast for the act. All 
the other votes had been purchased either by gifts 



History of Gcoi-sid 157 

of money or of shares in the land companies. It was 
said that "in the lobbies of the Senate and House 
alternately were seen a judge of the Supreme Court 
of the United States, from Pennsylvania, with 
twenty-five thousand dollars in his hands, as a cash 
payment; a judge of the United States District Court 
of Georgia, passing off shares of land to the mem- 
bers for their votes, and a senator from Georgia 
[Gunn], who had perfidiously neglected to proceed 
to Philadelphia to take his seat in Congress, and who 
was absent from his post until the last days of its ses- 
sion, bullying with a loaded whip, and by turns cajol- 
ing the numerous understrappers in speculation. 
There were also seen a judge of our State Courts, 
and other eminent Georgians, surrounding our poor 
degraded representatives, offering shares, sub-shares 
and half sub-shares, striving to frighten some, and 
to seduce others into compliance with their will."^ 

Even before the governor signed the act, there 
were indications of popular disapproval. A number 
of prominent citizens protested against the measure, 
William H. Crawford among others. Governor 
Matthews has been strongly censured for having 
signed the bill. No one has accused him of corrup- 
tion in the matter, but he was a weak and incompe- 
tent executive and allowed himself to be controlled 
by the politicians about him, most of whom were 
interested in the land speculation. 

■^ White, George, Slatist'ics of Georgia, p. 50. 



158 History of Georgia 

The Rescinding Act of 1796 

Though this whole transaction was disgraceful and 
a stain on the name of Georgia, the citizens of the 
state promptly did what they could to undo the 
mischief. A state convention met soon after the 
passage of the Yazoo act and condemned the sale. 
It became the issue in the elections of that year. 
General James Jackson/ one of our United States 
senators, felt so strongly on the subject that he re- 
signed his seat in the Senate and returned home to 
lead a movement looking to the repeal of the act. 
He was elected to the legislature from Chatham 
County. A majority of the new legislature being 
pledged to repeal the obnoxious act, a rescinding 
measure was passed in February, 1796, and the pur- 
chase money paid into the Treasury of Georgia was 

^ James Jackson was an Englishman by birth, immigrating to 
Georgia from Devonshire in 1772, at the age of fifteen. He was 
by nature an ardent republican, and though home ties were still 
fresh, he at once embraced the patriotic cause in 1776. Entering 
the army as a private, he rapidly rose to the rank of Lieutenant- 
Colonel, and after the war became a Brigadier-General of militia. 
General Jackson entered politics immediately after the Revolution, 
serving several terms in the state legislature. In 1788, he was 
elected Governor at the age of thirty, but declined the office on 
the ground that he was too young to fill the position. He was a 
member of the first Congress, and in 1793, 1794 and 1795 was 
United States Senator. Georgians did not forget his modest atti- 
tude towards the governorship, and ten years after he refused the 
office, he was again elected. After the expiration of his term as 
Governor, General Jackson was again sent to the United States 
Senate, and was a member of that body at the time of his death in 
1806. 



History of Georgia 



159 




James Jackson. 
From an engraving lent by Mr. A. B. Caldiuell, Publisher, Atlanta, Ga. 

ordered to be refunded. This rescinding act caused 
a great outcry throughout the Union. Anticipating 
trouble, the Yazoo speculators immediately on re- 



160 History of Geor,^ia 

ceiving their grants in 1795 had gone to other sections 
of the country and sold part of their holdings at enor- 
mous profit. The secondary purchasers maintained 
that they knew nothing of the circumstances under 
which the sale had been lobbied through the legisla- 
ture. Though denounced far and wide, the state 
stood by the rescinding act and gave no satisfaction 
to any claimant. 

Cession of the Western Lands, 1802 

About this time Georgia surrendered to the United 
States government all of her western claims. In so do- 
ing, she followed the example of the other states, all 
of which had given up their western territory. The 
terms of the cession were that Georgia should receive 
$1,250,000 and that the Indian title to her reserved 
territory should be extinguished. The central gov- 
ernment assumed all responsibility for settling claims 
arising from the Yazoo sales. In this way the Yazoo 
Fraud became a national issue. As soon as the news 
was heralded abroad that the government was about 
to purchase Georgia's western claims, Yazoo claim- 
ants swarmed to Washington to warn the government 
that the land was being bought at the risk of the 
United States, as their claim was a prior one. The 
commissioners appointed by the President to act for 
the central government were James Madison, Secre- 
tary of State ; Albert Gallatin, Secretary of the Treas- 
ury ; and Levi Lincoln, the Attorney General. On the 



History of Georgia IGl 

part of Georgia, the commissioners were James Jack- 
son, Abraham Baldwin and John Milledge/ For a 
number of years after the purchase. Congress was 
besieged with petitions from people seeking redress. 
The Federalist party and some of the northern Dem- 
ocrats favored paying the claims of the holders of 
the land scrip, as it was called ; but the southern wing 
of the Democratic party, led by John Randolph, of 
Virginia, succeeded in defeating the claimants year 
after year. The representatives of Georgia in Con- 
gress during the Yazoo agitation, George M. Troup, 
William W. Bibb, John Forsyth, and others, firmly 
opposed any appropriation to settle the claims. 

The Commissioners Recommend a Settlement of the 
Claims 

The commissioners appointed on behalf of the 
United States to look into the Yazoo matter were in- 
structed to examine the titles of the various claimants 
and make a recommendation to Congress. Their 
final report was made in 1803. The report stated 

^ John Milledge was born in Savannah in 1757 and before 
reaching manhood was thrown into the Revolutionary struggle. 
He w^as a member of the party that performed the first overt act 
of the conflict in this state in breaking open the powder magazine 
in Savannah. At the close of the War, Milledge entered poli- 
tics ; sat as a member of the lower house in the Assembly in 
1782; served several terms in Congress from 1792 to 1802, when 
he became Governor of Georgia, from which position he was 
advanced to a United States Senatorship on the death, in 1 806, 



162 History of Georgia 



1 



that all the lands had by that time passed out of the 
hands of the original speculators into the possession 
of secondary purchasers, who claimed to have bought 
without knowledge of fraud; but the commissioners 
found on the face of the deeds a provision that pur- 
chasers should have no claim on the speculators "by 
reason of any defect in their title from the State of 
Georgia." This clause put purchasers on notice, and 
the commissioners reported that in their opinion the 
title of the claimants was not good. However, they 
recommended that "the interest of the United States, 
the tranquillity of those who may hereafter inhabit 
that territory, and various equitable considerations 
which may be urged in favor of most of the present 
claimants, render it expedient to enter into a com- 
promise on reasonable terms." They, therefore, rec- 
ommended that $5,000,000 be appropriated to settle 
the claims and end the long controversy. The idea 
of the commissioners was that the settlement of the 
vast and fertile region in question would be retarded 
unless the land titles were cleared up. But Congress 
could not be induced to take this view, and for seven 



of General James Jackson. After filling this office for three 
years, Governor Milledge retired from public life. Milledge 
was a member of the committee appointed to select a site for 
the University of Georgia, and when the committee chose a situ- 
ation which was not on the property owned by the Univeisity, 
he purchased the tract and presented it to the University. The 
former capital, Milledgeville, w^as named in honor of Governor 
Milledge. He died in 1818 at his home near Augusta. 



History of Georgia 163 

years longer the Yazoo claims were a constant subject 
of discussion. 

The Supreme Court Intervenes 

Failing to get any satisfaction out of Congress, the 
Yazooists hit upon the idea that their case would be 
aided if they could get the Supreme Court to declare 
the act of the legislature of Georgia in rescinding 
the sale unconstitutional. Proceedings were begun 
and in 1810 the case known as Fletcher vs. Peck 
was decided. Chief Justice Marshall handed down 
the decision, which held the rescinding act uncon- 
stitutional, in that it impaired the validity of a con- 
tract. Following this decision Congress finally in 
1 8 14 passed an act appropriating $5,000,000 to settle 
all Yazoo claims, the act requiring that the money 
be raised from sales of the land in question. 

This settlement has seemed to some historians a 
fair and equitable one. It has been pronounced 
"probably just and unquestionably expedient." 
Georgians, however, long resented the payment of 
these claims. It was many years before the feeling 
over the Fraud died out in the state. Governor 
Wilson Lumpkin in his autobiography says that no 
man in Georgia was ever promoted to high office 
who was in any way connected with the Yazoo 
Fraud. The prevailing sentiment in regard to the 
action of the government in paying the claims was 
thus expressed by Governor Troup: ''The act was. 



Uii History of Georgia 

m effect and substance, a formal decree of the high- 
est authorities known to the Constitution of the 
United States, in perpetual testimony of the reward 
which awaits those who shall in future time success- 
fully bribe and corrupt the representatives of the 
people to sell their country." 



Summary 

''The Yazoo Fraud" was the name given to the sale 
of millions of acres of Georgia's western domain at 
the close of the eighteenth century. The sale was ob- 
tained by bribing the legislature. When a new legis- 
lature repealed the Yazoo Act the year following the 
sale, the purchasers of the land, and those to whom 
part of the holdings had been sold, commenced a 
fight, which lasted nearly twenty years, to secure 
redress. Georgia escaped from responsibility by sell- 
ing her rights to the disputed lands to the central 
government in 1802. After the Supreme Court in 
1810 declared that Georgia's rescinding act was un- 
constitutional, Congress appropriated $5,000,000 to 
pay the Yazoo claimants. 



m 



CHAPTER XIV 

POLITICAL PARTIES, 1 787-1840 

Federalists and Antifederalists 

The Constitution of the United States was a com- 
promise between those who desired practically to 
erase state lines and create a strong national state, 
and those who were unwilling for the individual 
states to surrender any considerable part of their sov- 
ereign powers. Even when, after much bickering 
and disagreement, the articles of the Constitution had 
been agreed upon by the delegates to the Convention, 
there was grave doubt whether the states would ratify 
the new form of government. The American people 
divided into two parties on the question of adop- 
tion. Those who favored the Constitution were 
called Federalists, those opposing It Antifederalists. 
Both parties had numerous and ardent supporters In 
every state. In some states the parties were of al- 
most equal strength, and In such cases great struggles 
were necessary before a majority could be won over 
in favor of the Constitution. The effort to defeat 
adoption was not confined to any one section. The 
fight was hardest In New York, Massachusetts and 
Virginia. New York adopted by a majority of two 

16." 



166 History of Georgia 

votes; Massachusetts by a majority of nineteen votes 
in a convention of three hundred and fifty-five mem- 
bers; while in Virginia the vote stood eighty-one for 
and seventy-nine against adoption. The hesitation 
of New York and Virginia was due to their reluc- 
tance to surrender state control over commerce. 
They feared that New England might get control 
over the commercial policy of the nation and use 
that power to the injury of the other sections. 
Georgia appears to have ratified the Constitution 
unanimously. Georgia newspapers paid little atten- 
tion to the Constitutional Convention which met in 
Augusta, in December, 1787. There is no record of 
any debate on the question of adoption. 

Antifederalists Become the Democratic-Republican 
Party 

The Antifederalists, defeated, were compelled to 
bow to the will of the majority. Though the name 
"Antifederalist" was dropped, future political parties 
continued to exist on the issues which had been 
fought out in the constitutional conventions of the 
several states. Under the leadership of Thomas Jef- 
ferson the Antifederalists took the name of Demo- 
cratic-Republicans, the guiding principle of the or- 
ganization being a strict adherence to the letter of 
the Constitution. Since the terms of the Constitu- 
tion were the best they had been able to obtain in the 
direction of state supremacy, henceforth they op- 



History of Georgia 167 

posed any attempt to stretch the powers that had been 
delegated to the central government. The Demo- 
cratic-Republicans believed in the exercise of a mini- 
mum amount of government; the Federalists strove 
to make the Union a national state by limiting the 
sphere of state activity and by enlarging and extend- 
ing the powers of the central government. 

The Federalist Party Loses its Following in Georgia 

The apparent lack of any discussion over the adop- 
tion of the Constitution in Georgia indicates that 
Georgians had obtained all they could reasonably 
expect and that a majority were in favor of a stronger 
form of Union. But the peculiar trend of state af- 
fairs caused Georgia to take a strong stand against 
any interference on the part of the United States 
government. The governors of Georgia were con- 
stantly becoming involved in disputes with the cen- 
tral government in the matter of cessions of Indian 
lands. In 1790 the legislature formally protested 
against the claim of the United States to have con- 
trol over Indian lands in Georgia. Another cause 
of hostility towards the Federalist party and the gen- 
eral principle of increasing the power of the central 
government was the famous Chisholm case. Chis- 
holm, a resident of South Carolina, in 1792 brought 
suit against Georgia in the Supreme Court of the 
United States. The question the court had to decide 
was, ''Could a sovereign state be sued by a citizen of 



168 History of Georgia 

another state?" The court by a vote of two to one 
decided in the affirmative. The legislature of 
Georgia promptly passed an act imposing the death 
penalty on any officer who should attempt to carry 
out the decision of the court by serving papers on the 
authorities of Georgia. A majority of the states sym- 
pathized with Georgia's attitude, and an amendment 
to the Constitution, the Eleventh, was adopted, mak- 
ing such suits unconstitutional. 

In these controversies the public men of Georgia 
had been forced into expressing emphatically their 
belief in state sovereignty over all matters the con- 
trol of which had not been given to the central gov- 
ernment. There being but little difference of opin- 
ion in Georgia on this issue, the party which fa- 
vored extending the power of the United States did 
not succeed in retaining its following in our state. 
In the Presidential election of 1796 the Federalists 
carried only four of the twenty-one counties. 

Era of Personal Politics 

While practically all Georgians, therefore, were 
in national politics members of the Democratic-Re- 
publican party during the first three decades of the 
nineteenth century, it must not be supposed that it 
was a time of no political strife. As is always the 
case in ''one-party" states, factions soon appeared 
in the dominant party, and the fights between the fol- 
lowers of the several leaders were quite as bitter as 



History of Georgia 



169 




William Harris Crawford. 
From an engraving lent by Mr. A. B. Caldivell. 

they could have been had there been fundamental 
differences in principles. It was an era of personal 



170 History of Georgia 

politics. The people of the state tended to fall into 
rather sharply separated classes. We have seen how 
along the Broad River two groups of emigrants, 
from Virginia and North Carolina, settled. The 
Virginians came from the planter class and were 
somewhat aristocratic in their views. The North 
Carolinians, on the other hand, came from the small 
farmer class. With the coming of cotton production 
on a large scale, the differences between rich planters 
and small farmers were emphasized. This social and 
economic division had come about long before on the 
seacoast, and it was natural that the aristocratic ele- 
ment of the two centers of population, the seaboard 
and the uplands, should act together in politics, and 
that the small farmer and frontier element should 
act together. General James Jackson led the aristo- 
crats of the seacoast, and William Harris Crawford^ 
the same people in the uplands. 

^William Harris Crawford was born in Virginia, in 1772, his 
parents migrating to Georgia in 1783. Young Crawford was sent 
to the academy of Professor Moses Waddell, later President of 
the University of Georgia. While a student there, Crawford was 
associated with John C. Calhoun. After teaching a few years 
at Richmond Academy, Augusta, Crawford removed to Lexington, 
Oglethorpe County, and began the practice of law. After having 
held several minor state offices, Crawford became a United States 
Senator in 1807, and at once made a favorable impression on the 
country by his extraordinary mental capacity and fine personal 
appearance. During the last days of the Napoleonic Empire, he 
was sent as American Ambassador to France. Napoleon is said 
to have been struck by his princely bearing. In 181 5, President 
Madison appointed Crawford Secretary of War, but he was soon 



Histoiy of Georgia 171 

On the death of General Jackson in 1806 his posi- 
tion of leadership in South Georgia was assumed by 
George M. Troup. As Crawford soon withdrew 
from state politics, Troup became the leader of the 
entire aristocratic element, and this faction was 
known as the Troup party. Opposed to Troup were 
Elijah and John Clarke," father and son, who con- 
trolled the small farmer class and all frontiersmen. 

A number of celebrated political battles were 
fought between these two parties. John Clarke and 
Troup opposed each other for Governor in 18 19, 
Clarke being the successful candidate, and in 1821 



transferred to the more Important Treasury Department, a post 
which he retained during Monroe's administration. 

Crawford was looked upon as the natural successor of Monroe. 
It is highly probable that the highest office in the Republic would 
have been conferred on him, but for an untimely stroke of paraly- 
sis, which necessitated his retirement from public life. After a few 
years of rest, Crawford partially recovered his health, and became 
a superior court judge in Georgia, which position he was filling at 
the time of his death in 1834. 

" General John Clarke was a North Carolinian. He had prac- 
tically no educational advantages, as he grew to manhood during 
the Revolution. At sixteen, he was a soldier under his father. 
General Elijah Clarke, and performed valiant service in North 
Georgia. After the Revolution, he attained the rank of Major- 
General of militia. Clarke was the acknowledged and beloved 
leader of the small farmer class against the Virginian element and 
the planters of the seacoast. In biographical sketches of Clarke, 
most of which were written by his bitter political and personal 
enemies, he Is represented as a turbulent, quarrelsome and rough 
frontiersman, devoid of culture, education and refinement; but 
even his enemies gave him credit for patriotism and conspicuous 
personal bravery. 



li V History oj G turgid 

he was re-elected over Troup. At the 1823 election 
Clarke was not a candidate, but Troup defeated 
the candidate of the Clarke party, Matthew Talbot. 
In 1825 the system of choosing the governor w^as 
changed from election by the legislature to election 
by the people directly. Troup and Clarke w^ere 
again the contestants, and this time Troup defeated 
his old enemy. 



Measures Substituted for Men 

During all these years there w^as no essential dif- 
ference in the political creeds of the two Georgia 
factions. Toward the close of the third decade of the 
century the thinking men of the state began to tire of 
personal issues and to long for discussion of national 
questions. A chance for the two factions to take sides 
on a national issue came w^hen Governor Troup al- 
most brought on war w^ith the general government in 
connection with the question of removing the Creeks 
from Georgia. Many Georgians felt that the Gov- 
ernor had gone too far in his championship of state 
sovereignty, and the Clarke leaders seized upon this 
sentiment in the hope of discrediting the Troupers. 
The Clarke party changed its name to ''Union 
Party" while the Troupers, nothing loth to accept 
the challenge, styled themselves the "State Rights 
Party." This healthy reaction against personalities 
in politics began about 1829, and was greatly assisted 



History of Georgia ] 73 

by the stirring agitation in the early thirties over the 
tariff. 

Protective Tariffs 

In order to encourage manufacturing in the 
United States, Congress in 1816 imposed tariffs on 
certain manufactured articles. There was little op- 
position to the measure from any section, but w^hen 
the manufacturing classes, acquiring greater and 
greater influence over Congress, demanded and re- 
ceived constantly increasing aid. Southerners took 
a very hostile attitude toward ^'protection," because 
the South was largely an agricultural section and 
received little benefit from protective tariffs. This 
section felt that the value of the products of southern 
labor was reduced because the amount of goods for 
which these products could be exchanged was greatly 
lessened by the South's having to pay a higher price 
for clothes, shoes and other articles than would have 
been the case if foreign goods were allowed to com- 
pete in our markets with those of the New England 
States. Feeling on this subject grew so bitter that in 
1 83 1 South Carolina asserted that it was unconstitu- 
tional for Congress to levy a protective tariff, and 
threatened to ''nullify" the tariff law, so far as South 
Carolina was concerned. Nullification meant that 
if one of the states became dissatisfied with a law 
of Congress she might declare it of no force within 
her borders. Congress did not modify the tariff law 



iT-i History of Liiorgid 

in a manner to meet the views of South Caro- 
linians, and in 1832 the state attempted to put into 
praetice the principle of nullification. But President 
Andrew Jackson believed that it was his duty to 
uphold the authority of Congress. He felt that if 
everv state were allowed to put its own interpreta- 
tion on the laws of Congress, the Union would soon 
amount to nothing. Therefore he sent a message to 
Congress, known as the Force Bill Message, asking 
that he he empowered to use the army and navy of 
the United States to compel South Carolina to obey 
the law. ^^llen it became clear that President Jack- 
son was in earnest, and that none of the states ap- 
proved of South Carolina's radical action, a conven- 
tion repealed the nullification ordinance, thus reliev- 
ino; a very critical situation. 

Nullification in Georgia 

The current of events in South Carolina was 
watched with great interest in Georgia, as our people 
were no less hostile to the tariff than were the South 
Carolinians. In November, 1832, a convention met 
in Milledgeville to discuss the situation. John Mc- 
Pherson Berrien,^ until recentlv a member of Presi- 



^ John McPherson Berrien's father served under Washin2:ton in 
the Revolution, and in the house occupied by ^VashiniXton when 
his farewell address to the army was delivered, the subject of 
this note was born, in 1781. His father removed to Georgia when 
John was only a few months old. Berrien was irrJiduated from 
Princeton at fifteen, studied law. and was admitted to the bar 



History of (jeorj^ia 



i-) 




John McPhersox Berrien. 
From an engraving lent by Mr. W. J. DeRenne. 



before the completion of his eighteenth year. After several years 
of service as judge and legislator, he became United States Senator 
in 1825. His unusual oratorical power won for him the name "the 
American Cicero." When Andrew Jackson became President 
in 1829, he appointed Berrien to the cabinet position of Attorney- 
General ; but two years later Jackson quarreled with his cabinet 
and most of them resigned. After the break with Jackson, Ber- 
rien joined the Whig party, and re-entered national politics nine 
years later as a senator, when the Whigs came into power on 
the election of President Harrison. He remained in the Sen- 
ate until 1852, when he resigned, being seventy-one years of age 
and desiring to retire from active political life. He died In 1856. 



176 History of Georgia 

dent Jackson's cabinet, led the radical element of the 
convention; while John Forsyth/ United States Sen- 
ator and leader of the President's party in the Sen- 
ate, opposed South Carolina's plan of resistance to 
national law. After a three days' wrangle in the con- 
vention, Forsyth, with about fifty followers, with- 
drew from the convention, as it seemed likely that 
the majority would follow South Carolina in the 
nullification movement. The delegates of the Ber- 
rien faction passed resolutions which came close to 
embracing the doctrine of nullification. This action, 
however, does not appear to have been the sentiment 
of the state, for the legislature shortly thereafter con- 
demned the proceedings of the convention, called 
for a convention of Southern states to discuss the 



^ John Forsyth, a Virginian by birth, was brought by his par- 
ents as a four year old child to Georgia. In 1799, at eighteen, 
he was graduated from Princeton, in which institution so many 
eminent Georgians of his generation were trained. On his entrance 
into political life, Forsyth was made Attorney-General of Georgia, 
and in 181 3 was sent to Congress. He was advanced to the Sen- 
atorship in 1818, but one year later resigned to accept the post of 
Minister to Spain; and while acting in that capacity, carried 
through the negotiations for the cession of Florida to the United 
States. In 1827, he became the candidate of the Troup party for 
the governorship, was elected, and after one term returned to the 
United States Senate. Forsyth identified himself with the Jack- 
sonian policies. He strongly opposed nuHification as a lawful 
remedy for oppressive acts of Congress. On the reorganization 
of his cabinet, Jackson made Forsyth Secretary of State, the high- 
est of the cabinet positions. Forsyth retired from public life when 
the Democratic party w^nt down in defeat in 184.0.. and died in 
October of the following year. 



History of Georgia 177 

tariff, and passed the following resolution: ''Re- 
solved, that we abhor the doctrine of nullification as 
neither a peaceful nor a constitutional remedy, but, 
on the contrary, as tending to civil commotion and 
disunion." The public men of Georgia were almost 
unanimously opposed to South Carolina's action. 
Troup, Gilmer, William H. Crawford, Forsyth, and 
Wilson Lumpkin, Governor during the episode, all 
wrote strongly against nullification. 

Effect of Nullification on State Politics 

The two local parties, the Union Party and the 
State Rights Party, met in conventions during 1833. 
The Union Party adopted resolutions upholding 
President Jackson's conduct in connection with the 
nullification movement in South Carolina. The 
State Rights Party adopted resolutions to the effect 
that laws infringing on the rights of states were 
null and void. This party condemned the President's 
measures against South Carolina, especially the 
Force Bill Message, as deadly blows at state rights. 
The resolutions did not go to the extreme of frankly 
embracing nullification as a remedy for unconstitu- 
tional laws, but they were strongly against any co- 
ercion of states by the federal government. It is 
plain that Georgians were sharply divided on this 
subject, and the result was that the movement begun 
in 1829, looking to political division on principles 
rather than on leaders, was completed in 1833, ^"^ 



178 History of Georgia 

for a number of years afterward political discussion 
was on a much higher plane than is ever the case 
when practically all the people belong to one party 
and factional fights between rival leaders constitute 
the only political activity of the state. 

Whig and Democratic Parties 

President Jackson made a great many enemies. 
One of the traits of his peculiar disposition was his 
habit of imputing personal motives to any one who 
opposed his views. He inevitably came into con- 
flict with other men of his party of strong mind and 
independent character, and one by one read them 
out of his party. The result was that during his 
first term as President, from 1828 to 1832, a coali- 
tion known as the Whig Party was made of all his 
enemies. Such eminent Georgians as Robert Toombs, 
Alexander H. Stephens and Berrien w^ere for a time 
members of this new organization. 

The State Rights Party of Georgia was absorbed 
in the Whig Party and adopted its name. The fol- 
lowers of the President became known as Jacksonian 
Democrats, or simply Democrats, and the Union 
Party of Georgia adopted that name. The Jack- 
sonian Democrats were the political descendants of 
the Jeffersonian Democratic-Republicans. 

The Whig and Democratic Parties for several 
years were quite evenly balanced in Georgia. In 
1840 the Whig presidential candidate. General Har- 



History of Georgia 179 

rison, carried Georgia; but the next year the Demo- 
crats elected Charles J. McDonald in the guberna- 
torial contest. The Whigs were successful in 1843, 
electing George W. Crawford as governor. 

The agitation over slavery in the next decade 
killed the Whig Party. Its members in Georgia 
shifted over to the Democratic Party, and Georgia 
again became a one-party state, as she has since re- 
mained. 

Summary 

Political parties originated in the United States 
as the result of disagreements as to the sort of union 
the states should make. Some people desired a strong 
federal government; others wanted to give it a mini- 
mum of powers. The advocates of strong central 
government were called Federalists, their opponents 
Antifederalists. After the constitution had been 
adopted these two parties continued, the Antifederal- 
ists taking the name Democratic-Republican. The 
main difference between them was that the Federal- 
ists tried in every way to increase the strength of the 
federal government, while the Democratic-Repub- 
licans emphasized the sovereignty of the individual 
states. Unfortunate disagreements in Georgia be- 
tween the Governors and the early Presidents, who 
were Federalists, and other causes, resulted in the 
decline of the Federalist Party in Georgia, and for 
twenty years there was only one party. Factions 



180 History of Georgia 

sprang up and bitter contests were waged between 
adherents of the two sets of leaders. In the third 
decade of the century a great political crisis came in 
the United States, when it became necessary for the 
people to decide whether or not a state could set 
aside the national law. On this issue Georgians di- 
vided. Those who favored the President's course in 
coercing South Carolina were called ^'Unionists," 
while the strict adherents of state rights sovereignty 
took the name of ''State Rights" party. These local 
organizations were absorbed into the two national 
parties, the Jacksonian Democratic and the Whig. 
At a later time the Whig Party died out in Georgia, 
on account of its attitude on the slavery controversy. 
The details of this movement will be given in a sub- 
sequent chapter. It is only necessary to say here that 
the former Whigs joined the Democratic Party, and 
the feelings aroused by the Civil War and Recon- 
struction have effectually prevented any other party 
than the Democratic from obtaining any considerable 
following in Georgia. 

Additional Reading: 

Sketches of John Clarke, William H. Crawford, John M. 
Berrien, and John Forsyth: Northen, W. J., Men of Mark in 
Georgia, II. Beginning of Parties in Georgia: Harris, J. C, 
Stories of Georgia, pp. 227-233. 



CHAPTER XV 

PUSHING BACK THE FRONTIER: CREEK 
INDIANS, 1733-1827 

The Creeks 

During the years between the Yazoo Fraud and 
the time when the slavery question occupied public 
attention, the most important political issue in 
Georgia was the long struggle to get possession of the 
Indian lands. The principal nations or tribes in 
Georgia were the Creeks and Cherokees. The Cher- 
okees lived north of the 34th parallel of latitude/ 
A line drawn along the Broad River to Athens and 
thence to Cedartown would describe their southern 
boundary. Below this line was the Creek Confed- 
eracy, a sort of loose union of many of the southeast- 
ern tribes. The Creek nation extended into Ala- 
bama, where the term "Upper" Creeks was used in 
contradistinction to the "Lower" Creeks, as they were 
called in Georgia. In 1773 the Creeks numbered 
four thousand warriors, the total population being 
12,000. In 1820 the total population was estimated 
at 20,000, of whom only 5,000 lived in Georgia. 

^ See map, p. 16. 



182 History of Georgia 

Cessions under Colonial and State Governments 

At the time of the Revolution the settled portion 
of Georgia consisted of a narrov^ strip of territory 
along the seaboard and the Savannah River. This 
land had been ceded by the Indians in three treaties 
in 1733, 1763 and 1773. During the Revolutionary 
War the Indians sided w^ith the British, the royal 
governors having secured their support by the liberal 
distribution of presents vs^hen hostilities became immi- 
nent. As a punishment for their depredations a raid 
was made in 1783 against both Creeks and Cherokees. 
Certain lands lying about the sources of the Oconee 
River w^ere held in joint possession by the two tribes. 
The Cherokees were forced to cede this land early in 
1783, the Creek title being extinguished in November 
of the same year. The wording of the Creek treaty 
is not clear, and it is uncertain just how much land 
the Creeks intended to cede. But the Legislature 
of Georgia apparently interpreted the cession to in- 
clude all lands east of the Oconee, since we find this 
region made into the counties of Franklin and Wash- 
ington the following year. 

By the Treaty of Galphinton, 1785, the boundary 
between the Indians and Georgia was declared to 
be a line drawn from the confluence of the Oconee 
and Ocmulgee Rivers to the ''most southern part of 
the stream called the St. Mary's River." The Treaty 
of Shoulderbone, 1786, reaffirmed the Treaty of Gal- 
phinton. 



History of Georgia 183 

The Creek War 

The treaties of 1783, 1785 and 1786 were made 
between the Indians and the state authorities, in spite 
of the fact that under the Articles of Confederation 
the power of making such treaties had been with- 
drawn from the states and made a function of the 
central government. Furthermore, the treaties in 
question had all been negotiated with a minority of 
the Creeks, very much against the wishes of the ma- 
jority. Under the leadership of a famous Indian 
half-breed chief, named Alexander McGillivray, the 
discontented element appealed to the central govern- 
ment for redress, and began a harrowing border war- 
fare. The Continental Congress, on investigation, 
declared the treaties of Galphinton and Shoulder- 
bone illegal, but it was powerless to set aside the 
wishes of the state of Georgia. In spite of the Creek 
War settlers continued to pour into the country to 
the east of the Oconee, where they lived for a num- 
ber of years in great peril of their lives, in log forts 
erected at intervals along the river. These forts were 
large enough to accommodate tents or huts for all 
the surrounding settlers. The settlers worked in their 
fields in groups as far as possible, and stood ready at 
a moment's notice to repel invasion, or to give chase 
on horseback to bands of marauding savages. United 
States troops were garrisoned at various points on 
the Oconee. 



184 History of Georgia 

United States Government Assumes Control over In- 
dian Cessions 
In the Federal Constitution of 1789 the treaty 
making power was given to the President and Sen- 
ate, including treaties with Indians. President 
Washington at once took up the exasperating ques- 
tion of the Creek War in Georgia. On his invita- 
tion the Creeks sent a delegation of chiefs to New 
York to confer with him, Alexander McGillivray 
being the most important of the chiefs present. 
Washington induced the Creeks to make a new treaty, 
surrendering all claim to the land east of the Oconee. 
At the same time, however, the Tallassee country, 
as extreme south Georgia was called, was restored 
to them, and the Creeks were guaranteed possession 
of their remaining lands in Georgia. These two 
clauses were bitterly opposed in Georgia, as they 
seemed to assert the sovereignty of the United States 
over the Indian lands. So strongly did General 
Elijah Clark, of Revolutionary fame, resent this 
guarantee to the Indians that he illegally crossed the 
Oconee and proceeded to make a settlement, but was- 
forced by the state authorities to give up his project. 

Georgia Cedes the Western Territory 

No further cessions of Indian land were obtained 
between 1790 and 1802. In the latter year Georgia 
ceded to the United States all land between the Chat- 
tahoochee and the Mississippi, the national govern- 



History of Georgia 185 

ment binding itself to remove the Indians entirely 
from Georgia's reserved territory as soon as it could 
be done ''peaceably and on reasonable terms." The 
central government held that the Indian tribes were 
nations in the widest sense of the term, and that their 
ambassadors were entitled to the courtesies extended 
to foreign diplomats. Acting on this notion, the 
Presidents utterly refused to compel the Indians to 
cede lands against their will. The state government, 
on the other hand, insisted that Indian tribes were 
simply "communities without sovereignty and with- 
out any right to the soil but that of tenants at will." 
The Presidents of the United States interpreted the 
agreement with Georgia simply as a promise to use 
their best endeavors to persuade the Indians to cede 
land; Georgians regarded the cession of 1802 as bind- 
ing the federal government to extinguish the Indian 
title within a very short time, by purchase, if possi- 
ble; by pressure, if necessary. Under this agreement 
small cessions were obtained in 1802 and 1804, ex- 
tending the boundary of Georgia to the Ocmulgee 
River. 

The Land Lottery, 1803 

The Oconee River is the boundary line between 
two systems of land distribution. All lands to the 
east of the Oconee were granted under the Head 
Rights system, already described.^ There were 

^ See p. 142. 



186 History of Georgia 

many objections to this system. Given almost un- 
limited power of selection, immigrants chose only 
the best lands, leaving large areas on the frontier 
unoccupied, with the result that settlement was too 
sparse for safety. In the second place, it was almost 
impossible in the wild, unbroken forest for the lines 
of grants to be determined. It frequently happened 
that grants covering the same tract of land were is- 
sued to several different settlers, and endless law suits 
resulted. The Head Rights system also facilitated 
land frauds. Unscrupulous persons, with the con- 
nivance of surveyors, often obtained grants to lands 
that did not exist, and sold these grants to innocent 
people. In one Georgia county, Montgomery, land 
speculators obtained grants to 7,000,000 acres more 
than the total acreage of the county, and sold the 
fraudulent grants to unsuspecting persons outside the 
state. This was known as the Pine Barren Specula- 
tion, and was a great scandal in 1794 and 1795. 

Dissastisfaction with this system became so wide- 
spread that when the new cession was obtained the 
legislature bestirred itself to invent a new system. 
In 1803 an act was passed establishing a ''Land 
Lottery." This institution does not appear to 
have been used in other states. The act provided 
that the new lands and all subsequent lands to be ac- 
quired from the Indians should be surveyed at pub- 
lic expense and divided into small lots of uniform 
size. Each lot was then given a number, and a map 



History of Georgia 187 

of the whole was deposited In the surveyor general's 
office. Slips of paper with numbers representing the 
lots were placed with many blank slips in a box and 
people were allowed under certain restrictions to 
draw for lots. The Land Lottery system proved 
much more satisfactory than the older system. Fraud 
was manifestly an impossibility, rich and poor had 
an equal chance of securing lots, and by preventing 
the accumulation of large tracts of lands in the hands 
of speculators settlement was promoted far more rap- 
idly than formerly. 



Cession After the War of 1812 

The year 1812 found the United States again at 
war with Great Britain, and, as during the former 
war, tne Indians assisted the English. A wide con- 
spiracy of all Indians from Canada to Florida was 
organized by Tecumseh. Wilson Lumpkin, after- 
wards Governor of Georgia, was present at a council 
between Tecumseh and the Creeks. Of course, he 
did not know what was going on. He tells us in his 
memoirs that he had hardly reached home from an 
extended tour in Mississippi before the Indians be- 
gan massacring the settlers. They committed many 
outrages among the settlements of lower Alabama 
and in Mississippi, the most distressing of which was 
the murder of men, women and children when they 
captured Fort MIms, In Alabama. Aroused by the 



188 History of Georgia 

fate of the people at Fort Mims, the Southern states 
sent several expeditions against the Creeks, one of 
which was led by General Andrew Jackson, after- 
wards President of the United States, and another by 
General Floyd, commanding a force of Georgia mi- 
litia. The lower Creeks did not take part in this 
war and were careful to avoid hostile acts. General 
Jackson conquered the Creeks and obtained a treaty 
with them in 1814 by which they ceded a large body 
of land in central and southern Alabama, as well as 
the Tallassee country, or southern part of Georgia. 
This section of the state, however, was not held in 
high esteem, and there was great dissatisfaction in 
Georgia, where it was felt that the conduct of the 
Indians in the war afforded an excellent reason for 
compelling a cession of all their remaining lands in 
Georgia. Such a course, however, did not seem fair, 
in view of the fact that the Georgia Creeks had taken 
no part in the war. 



The Boundary Extended to the Flint River 

In 1 82 1, during the administration of Governor 
John Clarke, the Indian title to the country between 
the Ocmulgee and Flint Rivers was extinguished. 
After this cession the Creeks felt cramped for lands 
and declined to sell more territory, while the national 
government, falling back on the ''peaceable and rea- 
sonable terms" clause in the agreement of 1802, re- 



History of Georgia 189 

fused to push matters. In 1823 George M. Troup^ 
was elected Governor of Georgia. His feeling on 
the subject of expelling the Indians from Georgia 
was very strong, and in a message to the Legislature 
he recomrnended that a protest be sent to the central 
government. This was done, and elicited from Pres- 
ident Monroe the opinion that ''the Indian title was 
not affected in the slightest circumstance by the com- 
pact with Georgia, and that there is no obligation on 
the United States to remove the Indians by force." 

Governor Troup maintained, on the contrary, that 
"the words 'as soon as may be' in the articles of agree- 



^ George M. Troup, whose untiring activity resulted In the final 
expulsion of the Creeks, was one of the most interesting men of 
his time. Born In 1780, In Alabama, then a part of Georgia, his 
whole life was Identified with this state. He was graduated with 
distinction from Princeton, in 1797, one year after John M. Ber- 
rien, and two years before John Forsyth. Choosing the profession 
of law, Troup was admitted to the bar of Savannah In 1800. 
After three years In the Legislature, he went to Congress In 1806, 
holding his seat until 181 5. During the heated discussions grow- 
ing out of the Yazoo speculation, he strongly denounced at every 
opportunity any proposition to settle the claims of the holders of 
scrip. During the War of 181 2, Troup was chairman of the 
Military Committee of Congress. In 1816, he was elected United 
States Senator, but resigned two years later, desiring to retire to 
private life. His friends, however, would not allow Troup to 
enjoy his country place, and the next year we find him embarked 
on his eventful career in Georgia politics. As Governor, 1823 
to 1827, Troup was principally concerned with the Creek Indi- 
dlans. He expressed himself more forcibly than any public man 
of his time on the question of state sovereignty ; so much so, in- 
deed, as to cause his political enemies In Georgia to make capital 
of his extreme attitude In this matter. 



190 



History of Georgia 




George Michael Troup. 
From an engraving lent by Mr. A. B. Caldnvell. 



ment and cession will not longer avail the United 
States anything; the operation of these has been long 
since estopped by time." In his opinion neither 



History of Georgia 19] 

party to the 1802 agreement contemplated that twenty 
years would elapse and find Georgia in possession 
of only about half of her reserved territory. 

The Final Cession 

The question of land cessions was now a critical 
one with the Creeks. They faced the alternatives of 
migrating west of the Mississippi in accordance with 
the wishes of Georgia, or of declining to relinquish 
more land. On this question the Creeks became di- 
vided. The Lower Creeks, under the leadership of 
a very intelligent half-breed chief, named William 
Mcintosh, decided in favor of removal; but the Up- 
per or Alabama Creeks, who constituted a majority 
of the Creek nation, opposed this course. President 
Monroe approved of negotiations with the Georgia 
Creeks for a cessi-on of lands in Georgia, provided 
that the cession be ratified by the whole Creek nation. 
The Georgia Creeks were assembled at Indian 
Springs, in February, 1825. They agreed to sell all 
of their lands in Georgia for $5,000,000 and an equal 
acreage west of the Mississippi. This treaty was sent 
to Washington, approved by the Senate and signed 
by the President, in March. 

The next month a party of the hostile Alabama 
Creeks surrounded the house of Mcintosh, set fire 
to it and shot the chief as he ran out. The friendly 
Creeks, panic stricken, fled to the white settlements 
for protection. 



192 History of Georgia 

The government Indian agent was using his influ- 
ence against a cession, largely on account of his per- 
sonal enmity towards Governor Troup. He sent evi- 
dence to President Adams, who had just succeeded 
Monroe, that the treaty had been obtained from a 
very small minority of the Creeks, and President 
Adams ordered Governor Troup to have the surveys 
stopped. As soon as the treaty of 1825 was concluded 
Governor Troup had begun to run lines in the In- 
dian country so as to have the land ready for settle- 
ment after the departure of the Indians. The Presi- 
dent then summoned the Creek chiefs to Washing- 
ton, where in February, 1826, a treaty was made by 
which the Indians gave up all of their lands in 
Georgia, except a small strip on the Alabama line. 
The treaty provided that they were to have posses- 
sion until January i, 1827; but Governor Troup, 
against the protest of the President, had the surveys 
finished by October, 1826. The Governor ignored 
the Treaty of Washington and maintained the valid- 
ity of the Indian Springs treaty. The Washington 
treaty had made a small reservation of lands on the 
Alabama line, shown on the map. Governor Troup 
in January proceeded to survey this reservation. The 
Creeks protested to President Adams, who threat- 
ened to use military force, if necessary, to compel the 
Governor to keep out of the unceded land. Governor 
Troup met this threat by issuing an order, as com- 
mander in chief of militia, to the major generals, to 



History of Georgia 193 

hold their commands in readiness. He intended to 
defend the state from invasion on the part of the 
United States. The President, however, did not 
carry out his threat. Instead, he persuaded the 
Creeks to cede the small strip of land remaining in 
their possession. This last treaty was concluded in 
1827. 

Summary 

From the founding of the colony of Georgia to the 
final removal of the Creek Indians almost a century 
elapsed. The long residence of the Creeks in the 
state was due to the fact that in the eighteenth cen- 
tury there was no necessity for taking their lands, the 
population of Georgia being very small ; while in the 
nineteenth century the Indians, with the support of 
the general government, were slow in making cessions. 
Under the Federal Constitution the right of acquiring 
Indian land was taken away from the individual 
states and lodged in the hands of the President and 
Senate; and as the Indian nations were considered 
to be the rightful owners of the land, the government 
was averse from urging them to sell against their 
wishes. The result was a very gradual recession of 
the Indian frontier, land being ceded in narrow 
strips. It was due largely to the determined position 
taken by Governor Troup that the Creeks were forced 
to cede their last territory in this state in 1826 and 
1827. The Oconee River is the dividing line between 



194 History of Georgia 

the two systems of land distribution. East of that 
stream the Head Rights system was used; the land 
to the west was given away under the Land Lottery 
scheme. 

Additional Reading: 

Acquisition of the Creek Lands: Phillips, U. B., Georgia and 
State Rights, Chap. II. 

The Creek War: Harris, Joel Chandler, Stories of Georgia, 
pp. 184-198. McGillivray and Mcintosh, Harris, pp. 199-215. 




T-:";:- 




I 5^ 



'*i 



CHAPTER XVI 

GEORGIA AND THE CHEROKEE NATION OF 
INDIANS, 1783-1838 

The Cherokees 

The Cherokee nation of Indians once possessed a 
vast territory/ Their boundaries were the Ohio River 
on the north, the Blue Ridge and the Kanaw^ha 
and Wateree Rivers on the east, the Creek lands 
on the south, while on the west their hunting grounds 
extended to the Tennessee River. At the time when 
the strife over their lands became acute in Georgia, 
this extensive domain had been reduced by treaties 
to a relatively small area, lying principally in north 
Georgia, though it reached into western North Caro- 
lina, east Tennessee and northeast Alabama. A cen- 
sus of the Cherokees taken in 1825 showed a total 
population of 13,563 Indians, 1,277 negro slaves, and 
in addition there were 220 whites living among them. 

Early Cessions 

A large number of treaties were entered into be- 
tween the federal government and the Cherokees, 
but only two or three extinguished claims in 

^ See map, p. 16. 

195 



196 History of Georgia 

Georgia. A tract north of Broad River was ac- 
quired under the Colonial government. At the close 
of the Revolution the Cherokees w^ere compelled to 
give up a small tract of land. Between 1817 and 
1 8 19, when about a third of the Cherokees migrated 
westward, the state acquired further land, though the 
cession was not important, as the majority of the mi- 
grating Indians were not from Georgia. 

Cherokee Land Not in Demand until about 1820 

There was not an insistent demand during the 
early years of the century for Cherokee lands. The 
invention of the cotton gin had given a tremendous 
impetus to the cotton industry, and the Creek lands 
were far more suitable for the production of that 
staple. But by 1820 the state authorities began to 
put pressure on the central government to carry out 
the agreement of 1802. An effort was made in 1823 
to secure a cession, but the Cherokees felt that fur- 
ther cessions would necessitate their removal west 
of the Mississippi, and, as a majority was opposed to 
such a course, the nation declared that it would not 
cede any more land. 

Cherokees a Semi-Civilized People 

The Cherokees had during the first quarter of the 
last century to some extent abandoned savage modes 
of life and were making progress in civilization. The 
Federal government aided this change in every way 



History of Georgia 197 

it could. With the increase in population and the 
gradual encroachment of the white man, game was 
disappearing, and the Indians were forced to become 
herdsmen and agriculturists. The government sup- 
plied them with hoes, rakes, plows, looms, cards and 
spinning wheels. The more intelligent Indians had 
taken advantage of the aid extended by the govern- 
ment and were showing capacity for civilization. A 
report made to the War Department in 1825 says 
that industrial and commercial life was flourishing 
among the Cherokees; population increasing; schools 
being established, and aiTairs in general in an en- 
couraging condition. In 1829 General Carroll 
toured Cherokee land at the President's request. He 
reported that ''the advancement the Cherokees had 
made in morality, religion, general information and 
agriculture had astonished him beyond measure. 
They had regular preachers in their churches, the 
use of spirituous liquors was in great degree prohib- 
ited, their farms were worked much after the man- 
ner of the white people and were generally in good 
order." 

In 1827 the Cherokees set up a written constitu- 
tion, modeled on the Federal Constitution. In this 
document they claimed independence as one of the 
distinct nations of the earth, much to the disgust of 
Georgians. Governor Forsyth protested to the Pres- 
ident against "the erection of a separate government 
within the limits of the sovereign state." 



198 History of Georgia 

Progress of Cherokees Due to Presence of Whites 

This progress of the Cherokees in civilization was 
due in large measure to the presence of half-breeds 
among them. During the Revolution many Tories 
had refugeed in Cherokee land, married Indian 
women and raised up families. Governor Wilson 
Lumpkin visited the Cherokees in 1825 and found 
that those people who were pursuing civilized 
branches of business were of white blood. He says, 
''But truth requires the statement of the fact that 
from the year 1825 to the final removal of the Chero- 
kees, in 1840,^ the great body of common Indians, 
who resided in obscurity and had but little inter- 
course with the white and half-breed races amongst 
them, still remained in brutal and savage ignorance."^ 
The chiefs, who exercised almost autocratic author- 
ity, were almost invariably half-breeds and had Eng- 
lish names. John Ross, the most powerful of their 
chiefs, was a half-Scot, a man of unusual mental ca- 
pacity, well educated, and a fluent writer and 
speaker. Major Ridge and John Ridge were also 
great half-breed chiefs. These men controlled the 
political life of the Cherokees, were the recipients 
of large government bounties, and when treaties were 
made, got the bulk of the money paid for lands. 

^ The records show that the Cherokees left in 1838. 
- Lumpkin, Wilson, Removal of the Cherokee Indiafis from 
Georgia, I, p. i88. 



History of Georgia 199 

Georgia Extends the Jurisdiction of her Laws Over the 
Cherokees 

The determination of Governor Forsyth and the 
people of Georgia to prevent the establishment of 
an independent Cherokee Nation within our borders 
found expression in 1828, when the Legislature 
passed an act extending the jurisdiction of the state 
laws and courts over the Cherokee country. Two 
years later it was made illegal for any council of the 
Cherokees to convene, their courts to sit or processes 
to be executed. If this legislation were upheld, it 
meant, of course, the extinction of the Cherokee Na- 
tion. President Jackson approved the course taken 
by Georgia. The intelligent chiefs of the nation, 
seeing that no help could be expected from the Presi- 
dent, appealed to the Supreme Court. They em- 
ployed counsel, and in 1830 applied for an injunc- 
tion to restrain the state from carrying into effect the 
legislation of 1828 and 1830. 

Cherokee Nation vs. The State of Georgia 

The decision of the court in the noted case of the 
Cherokees against Georgia was handed down in 
1 83 1. The petition for an injunction was denied on 
the ground that the court had no jurisdiction. For 
the Cherokees to be competent to sue in the Supreme 
Court, it was necessary for their counsel to prove 
that they were a state. The court held that while the 
plaintiff's counsel had proved that the Indian tribes 



200 History of Georgia 

had always been treated by the national government 
as states, and while treaties made with them had rec- 
ognized them as "people capable of maintaining the 
relations of peace and war, of being responsible in 
their political character for any violation of their 
engagements," yet they certainly were not states of 
the Union nor foreign states within the meaning of 
the Constitution. Chief Justice Marshall, who spoke 
for the court, said, "They may, more correctly, per- 
haps, be denominated domestic dependent nations." 
Mr. Justice Baldwin concurred. In his view, if the 
Cherokees were pronounced a state, capable of suing, 
then all the Indian tribes, of which there were hun- 
dreds, would be states, and the Supreme Court would 
speedily be flooded with suits brought by the Indians 
against the states. From the majority opinion Mr. 
Justice Thompson and Mr. Justice Story dissented. 
They held that the Cherokees were clearly a sover- 
eign state within the meaning of the Constitution. 

The decision, it will be observed, did not pass upon 
the real issue, the constitutionality of Georgia's 
course in extending the jurisdiction of her laws over 
the Cherokees. The case had simply been thrown 
out of court by the decision that Cherokees were not 
competent to sue in the Supreme Court. 

Worcester vs. The State of Georgia 

The Cherokee question became more critical in 
1829 when valuable gold mines were discovered in 



History of Georgia 201 

Cherokee land. By the summer of 1830 three thou- 
sand white men had come to the Indian country. 
They were a vicious, profligate lot of men, and, freed 
from the restraints of civilized society, created much 
disorder with their gambling, drinking and carous- 
ing. In December the Legislature of Georgia passed 
an act making it illegal for any white man to live in 
Cherokee land after March, 1831, unless a permit 
were obtained from state authorities. A man named 
Worcester, a missionary, refused either to leave 
Cherokee land or to get a license to remain there. 
He was tried for illegal residence before the Gwin- 
nett County Superior Court and sentenced to four 
years in the penitentiary. He refused a pardon of- 
fered by Governor Gilmer, if he would promise not 
to repeat the offense. His sympathies being with the 
Cherokees, he preferred to test the constitutionality 
of Georgia's course in passing laws to be enforced in 
the country of the Indians. This case was tried be- 
fore the United States Supreme Court in October, 
1 831, being taken up on an appeal from the lower 
court. The court now had a chance to pass upon the 
constitutionality of the acts of Georgia against the 
Cherokees, and a decision was handed down declar- 
ing the acts unconstitutional, on the ground that the 
"Cherokee Nation is a distinct community, occupy- 
ing its own territory, with boundaries accurately de- 
scribed, in which the laws of Georgia can have no 
force." 



202 History of Georgia 

President Jackson Refuses to Enforce the Decision 

The Cherokees thought for a moment that they 
had at last won in their long struggle against the 
state, but they had not taken into consideration the 
peculiar character of President Jackson. That ex- 
traordinary man simply refused to execute the deci- 
sion of the Supreme Court. "John Marshall has 
made his decision; now let him enforce it," he said. 
Several years before he had laid down his guiding 
principle on this subject when he said that "the arms 
of the United States would never be employed to 
stay any state of the Union from the exercise of the 
legitimate powers belonging to her in her sovereign 
capacity." 

Governor Wilson Lumpkin 

In the fall of 1831 Wilson Lumpkin^ became Gov- 
ernor of Georgia. His name had long been con- 
nected with the strife over Cherokee land. As a 



^Wilson Lumpkin (1783-1870), was born In Virginia, his par- 
ents migrating along with many other Virginians to Georgia in 
the latter part of the eighteenth century. The Lumpkins settled 
in Oglethorpe County. Wilson Lumpkin was a self-educated 
man. While he was growing up, he read all the literature of a 
serious nature that was available., His political career began in 
his twenty-first year, when he was elected to the state legislature. 
He held every office within the gift of Georgians, state senator, 
governor, congressman, and United States senator. No governor 
has ever sent to the legislature abler messages, covering so wide 
a range of topics. He was keenly interested In railroads, public 
education and the acquisition of the Indian lands. 



History of Georgia 



203 




Wilson Lumpkin. 
Reproduced by permission from "Removal of the Cherokee Indians from 
Georgia," edited by Mr. JV. J. DeRenne. 



204 History of Georgia 

member of Congress from 1827 to 1831, he had suc- 
ceeded in getting through both houses a bill to settle 
west of the Mississippi all Indians remaining in the 
East. His policy as Governor dififered radically from 
that of his predecessor, Governor Gilmer. The lat- 
ter favored the extension of the jurisdiction of 
Georgia laws over Cherokee land, but had discounte- 
nanced the actual settlement of the Indian lands by 
whites until a cession was obtained. Governor Lump- 
kin, on the other hand, believed it to be impractica- 
ble to enforce Georgia laws and government over 
Cherokee land without a better population. The 
laws had been violated and the offenders had escaped 
because there were not enough respectable white 
men in the Indian country to maintain the laws. He, 
therefore, advocated the immediate survey and dis- 
tribution of Cherokee land under the lottery system. 
It was not proposed by the Governor to take away 
any lands or improvements actually used by the 
Cherokees, but to introduce a white population to 
take up those parts of the country which were not 
occupied. The Legislature adopted the Governor's 
ideas and in 1831 authorized the survey and distribu- 
tion. The survey was completed In 1832 and the 
drawing of lots finished In May, 1833. In accord- 
ance with the act of 1832, Cherokee land was divided 
into the ten counties of Forsyth, Lumpkin, Union, 
Cobb, Cherokee, Gilmer, Cass, Murray, Floyd and 
Paulding. In his annual message of 1833 Governor 



History of Georgia 205 

Lumpkin mentions the fact that a settled freehold 
white population was to be found all over Cherokee 
land. 

In all these acts the Governor met with violent 
opposition from his political opponents in Georgia 
and from sentimentalists over the entire Union. He 
was incessantly annoyed and obstructed in his course 
by the Cherokee chiefs and their lawyers. 

Final Treaty, 1835 

Finding that no relief had come from the decision 
of the Supreme Court, a strong white population 
having occupied large parts of their land, and un- 
able to maintain their government, a faction of the 
Cherokees decided that it would be best to give up 
the struggle and migrate west of the Mississippi. 
The nation split into two parties on this question. 
The treaty party was led by the Ridges and Elias 
Boudinot. Boudinot was editor of the Cherokee 
Phoenix, a newspaper which had begun publication 
at the Cherokee capital several years before Gov- 
ernor Lumpkin's term of office began. The opposi- 
tion was headed by John Ross. Both parties, in 1835, 
sent delegations to Washington. The Ridge delega- 
tion went to negotiate a treaty; the Ross faction to 
protest against a cession. In March, 1835, ^ treaty 
was made between the government and the Ridge 
party, with a provision that the treaty was to be bind- 
ing only after it had received the sanction of the 



,?0(> Jlistory of (Jior\^i<i 

whole Cherokee Nation. In the following October, 
when the treaty was laid before a council of the na- 
tion, it was rejected. The United States Commis- 
sioners summoned a meeting of the Cherokees at a 
Cherokee town called New Echota. The Ross fac- 
tion did not come, but with the Ridge party the Com- 
missioners made a treaty, under the terms of which 
the Cherokees were to remove west of the Mississippi 
and receive $5,ocx:),ooo for their lands. This treaty 
was denounced by the Ross party, as not being the 
will of the majority. But the treaty was ratified at 
Washington, in spite of protests. Many prominent 
men in Congress took the part of the Indians; Con- 
gress was memorialized by the Ross faction and by 
disinterested persons. But all efforts at redress failed. 
General Scott was sent down to superintend the re- 
moval of the Cherokees, and by the end of 1838 the 
Nation had left the ancestral hunting grounds. A 
few Cherokees fled to mountain fastnesses to avoid 
removal and their descendants may still be found 
in extreme North Georgia. In their new homes the 
factional quarrels were renewed, the Ridges and 
Boudinot finally forfeiting their lives to the 
vengeance of the irreconcilable members of the Ross 
party. 

Summary 

Occupving the remote mountainous section of 
Georgia, the Cherokees were for many years left in 



Ilislory of (Jcor^ia 207 

undisturbed possession of their soil. The main inter- 
est of Georgians was to obtain lands suitable for cot- 
ton raising, and the Creek country was very much 
more desirable. It was only after the Creek contro- 
versy was settled, therefore, that the Cherokee matter 
became critical. The determination of Georgians to 
expel the Cherokees was partly due to the action of 
the Cherokees in setting up a formally organized 
government within the territory set apart to Georgia 
by the agreement of 1802 with the United States. 
The Cherokees were ably led by half-breed Indian 
chiefs and succeeded in getting a decision from the 
Supreme Court of the United States that Georgia 
had no right to break up their government. But for 
the fact that President Jackson sympathized with 
the state, the departure of the Cherokees would have 
been indefinitely delayed. A treaty was finally made 
with a minority of the Cherokees in 1835 ^^^ against 
the protest of the majority and of many disinterested 
men all over the Union, the Indians were compelled 
to move west of the Mississippi, receiving there an 
acreage equal to that surrendered, besides $5,000,000. 

A dditio nal R eadini^ : 

Removal of Cherokees: Harris, Joel Chandler, Stories of Geor- 
gia, pp. 216-226. 



CHAPTER XVII 

ORIGIN OF THE BLACK BELT IN GEORGIA 

What the Black Belt Is 

The accompanying maps were made by shading all 
those counties which were shown by the censuses of 
i860 and 19 10 to contain more negroes than white 
people. These counties, constituting what is known 
as the Black Belt, cover a large part of middle and 
southwest Georgia. All the counties north of this 
region contain white majorities, as do those of the 
southeastern section, except the seacoast counties, 
which constitute a smaller region of black predom- 
inance. The existence of this great Black Belt is one 
of the most important conditions at the present time, 
and there is no more interesting subject in the social 
history of the state than the origin and growth of 
this region. 

Invention of the Cotton Gin 

The Black Belt is a consequence of the cotton in- 
dustry. For many ages the utility of cotton in the 
manufacture of cloth had been known, but the wide- 
spread use of the fiber was until comparatively re- 

20 s 



History of Georgia 



209 




Black Belt Map of Georgia in i86o.i 



^A comparison of the map on page 210 with this map shows 
that during the past fifty years the main black belt of Georgia 
has filled out considerably. Nearly all of the counties of South- 
west Georgia now have black majorities, while a number of 
former white counties on the northern border of the belt have 
changed their complexion, notably Henry, Newton and Coweta. 
In i860, there were 44 counties with black majorities; in 1910, 



210 



History of Giorii'ia 




Black Belt of Georgia in 1910. 



e6. In the area covered by the principal black belt in 1910, 
the negroes were 60.8 per cent of the total population; in the 
same area in i860 they were 55.9 per cent. There has been 
a tendency for negroes to congregate in communities where they 
outnumber whites. On the seaboard, however, the negroes are 
relatively fewer now than was the case fifty years ago. They 
were 60.2 per cent of the total population of that section in i860; 
and in 1910, 58.5 per cent. 



History of Georgia 



211 



cent times impossible because of the difficulties in 
the way of getting the lint from the seed, spinning 
the fiber into thread and weaving the thread into 
cloth. All of these operations a hundred and fifty 
years ago were performed by hand, but in the eight- 
eenth century English inventors made machines to 
do the spinning and weaving, with the result that 




Whitney's Cotton Gin. 



one man could turn out as much cloth as had a hun- 
dred with the old hand methods. These inventions 
naturally created a tremendous demand for cotton, 
but the fact that a skillful worker could remove the 
seed from less than a dozen pounds of cotton in a 
day stood in the way of further development. Sev- 
eral devices were invented to overcome this diffi- 
culty, but it was reserved for a young man named Eli 



212 History of Georgia 

Whitney^ to perfect the simple and efficient machine 
which is now used. This invention revolutionized 
the economic history of Georgia and the other South- 
ern states. The raising of cotton and the industries 
that grew out of it soon became the greatest of all 
businesses. 



^ Eli Whitne)^ was born in Massachusetts, and was graduated 
from Yale in 1792. While he was on his way to South Carolina 
to take a teaching position, he met Mrs. Greene, widow of General 
Nathanael Greene, and was invited by her to spend a few days at 
her home near Savannah. His attention was called to the fact 
that the cotton industry was hampered by the lack of some me- 
chanical means of separating the seed from the lint ; and though he 
had never given the question any previous study, within ten days 
he had made a model which worked successfully. Many imper- 
fect gins had been made, but Whitney was the first inventor to put 
on the market a practical machine. His gin consisted of a wooden 
roller in which iron teeth had been set. The substitution of saws 
for the iron teeth was a later invention. With his gin, even when 
it was turned by hand, fifty times as much cotton could be cleaned 
as formerly. Whitney patented his invention and undertook not 
only to manufacture the gins, but to monopolize the business of gin- 
ning. In 1796 he had thirty gins going in Georgia, some run by 
water, others turned by horses or oxen. It was impossible for 
Whitney to supply the demand for gins in the way he went about 
it; the people were opposed to his attempt to monopolize ginning; 
and several men infringed on his patent rights, even going so far as 
to break into his workshop and steal the model. Whitney sued 
these people, but obtained a judgment only after many years of liti- 
gation. Georgia received more benefit from the invention than any 
other state, and yet refused to do anything for Whitney in a finan- 
cial way. South Carolina appropriated a large sum for Whitney's 
use, but this was expended in protecting his rights in Georgia. 
Though Whitney's name will always be famous as one of our 
greatest inventors, he made no profit from his invention. 



History of Georgia 213 

Revival of Slavery 

Experiment quickly revealed to the farmers of 
eastern Georgia that their lands were admirably 
suited to cotton growing, and the extremely high 
price of cotton (24 cents per pound in 1800) led to 
a rapid development of the industry. Those farmers 
who had been frugal and saved their money began 
to buy slaves and devote their attention to producing 
the great staple. Before the several inventions gave 
this impetus to cotton planting, slavery had been 
felt as a burden. The Northern States had years be- 
fore emancipated or sold their slaves, because they 
found it cheaper to hire labor by the day or month 
than to own and support the laborers. In the South 
also the feeling was growing that slavery was un- 
profitable. Most of the societies for the emancipa- 
tion or colonization of the slaves were of Southern 
origin. In 1820 Congressman Reid, of Georgia, de- 
nounced slavery on the floor of the House of Repre- 
sentatives at Washington, and as late as 1832 there 
were in Georgia four branches of the American Col- 
onization Society, which advocated gradual emanci- 
pation and deportation. John Randolph, of Vir- 
ginia, himself a slaveholder, said that he expected to 
live to see the day when masters would run away, 
be advertised and brought back to take care of their 
slaves. The explanation of this anti-slavery senti- 
ment is that slaves could not be profitably used ex- 
cept in large-scale industry. The only crops besides 



2] 4 History of Georgia 

cotton in which they were employed to any con- 
siderable extent were tobacco and rice. In view 
of the fact that soil suitable for these crops is very 
limited, it is probable that slavery would never have 
amounted to much but for the sudden development 
of cotton growing. The anti-slavery sentiment de- 
clined as soon as this new and extremely profitable 
way of utilizing slaves was discovered. Instead of 
trying to get rid of the few slaves in the South, there 
was a great rush to get more of them. 

White Counties Become Black 

All of the counties in the eastern part of the Black 
Belt once contained white majorities. Those counties 
nearest the Savannah River were the first of the Mid- 
dle Georgia counties to be settled. The early comers 
were people of limited means. They lived on the 
frontier, far from markets, and were forced to raise 
practically everything they used. Diversification of 
agriculture was therefore the rule. This simple so- 
ciety was transformed when cotton production be- 
came profitable. The most prosperous of the small 
farmers began to buy slaves and to increase their land 
holdings. Practically every other crop was aban- 
doned in order that attention might be concentrated 
on cotton raising. Augusta developed into an impor- 
tant market town, supplying the cotton raisers with 
the necessities not raised on the farm. This move- 
ment went on so rapidly that by 1800 Richmond 



History of Georgia 215 

County had a majority of blacks, and thus became 
the first of the Black Belt counties of Middle 
Georgia. Columbia was the second county to acquire 
a black majority, and by 1820, in Burke, Wilkes, 
Oglethorpe, Greene, Hancock and Baldwin, slaves 
outnumbered the white people. At each new census 
it was seen that the black counties were increasing in 
number. Gradually pushing westward and south- 
westward, by i860 the counties in extreme southwest 
Georgia had been added to the Black Belt. The 
direction which the movement took was dictated by 
the nature of the soil, the farmers naturally taking 
up what seemed to them the best land for their 
purpose. 

History of Typical Counties 

The population statistics of a group of Middle 
Georgia counties serve admirably to illustrate and 
explain the growth of the Black Belt. 

Population Statistics in Certain Middle 
Georgia Counties 





Columbia 


Lincoln 


Wilkes 


Ogle 


thorpe 




Whites 


Blacks 


Whites 


Blacks 


Whites 


Blacks 


Whites 


Blacks 


1800. . . 


•5321 


3024 


3326 


1440 


8032 


5071 


6686 


3094 


1810. .. 


.5229 


6013 


2331 


2224 


7602 


7285 


6857 


5440 


1820... 


•5213 


7482 


3378 


3080 


7838 


9768 


6703 


7343 


1830. . . 


.4467 


8139 


2824 


3321 


5265 


8972 


5659 


7959 


1840. . . 


.3920 


7436 


2527 


3368 


3630 


6518 


4506 


6362 


1850. . . 


.3617 


8344 


2187 


3811 


3805 


8203 


4382 


7877 


i860. .. 


•3511 


8349 


1675 


3791 


3434 


7986 


4014 


7535 


1900. . . 


.2900 


7753 


2883 


4273 


6423 


14442 


5638 


12243 



216 History of Georgia 

It will be observed that in all these counties in 1800 
the white people were overwhelmingly in the ma- 
jority, though there were many slaves even at that 
early date. Slaves were rapidly increasing in num- 
ber, however, and by 1820 had forged ahead in three 
of the counties, Lincoln showing a black majority in 
1830. During these twenty years, while large num- 
bers of slaves were being brought in, the white peo- 
ple were barely keeping their numbers up to the 
standard of 1800. After 1820 there comes a sharp 
break in the white population statistics, a rapid de- 
cline sets in, and at every census period up to i860 
the counties are seen to have lost more of their white 
citizens. The black columns, however, read differ- 
ently, for negroes continue to increase in number. 
The figures for 1900 are given to show the astonish- 
ing fact that there were far fewer white people in 
these counties in that year than there had been a 
hundred years previously. We are here concerned, 
however, only with the ante-bellum situation. These 
figures mean that up to about 1820 the small farmer 
working his own land was the leading element in the 
population ; but that after that time planters or large- 
scale farmers with their gangs of slaves assumed the 
control of the section. It is Important to note that 
it was not merely a matter of slave population grow- 
ing, but that there was an actual decline of the white 
population. The whites who moved out in the first 
instance were the small farmers. 



History of Georgia 217 

Why the Poorer Whites Migrated 

It must be remembered that during the first third 
of the nineteenth century Georgia was what may be 
called a pioneer state, that is to say, there was always 
fresh land toward the west. This Indian land was 
obtained in narrow slices, the frontier was gradually 
pushed back and new land became available for agri- 
culture. The wealthier planters in the older counties 
were constantly adding to their acres, buying more 
slaves and increasing the size of their business. They 
were forced to do this, because the price of cotton 
was steadily falling and the price of slaves as 
steadily going up, so that in order to keep up a 
certain income the planter was obliged to enlarge his 
operations. The result was that the plantations 
tended to absorb the little farms. The small farmers 
were usually quite willing to sell. Working with 
their own hands, they did not relish living amid a 
large black laboring population, and, furthermore, 
the new lands were beckoning them. Having but 
little to move, it was an easy matter for the small 
farmer to migrate to the new lands in the wilder- 
ness, cut down a few trees, build a cabin and begin 
life anew. But moving was a serious matter for the 
great planter, with large possessions of household 
furniture, slaves, cattle and work animals. These 
simple facts account for the decline In the white 
population and the well known Increase In the 
average number of slaves per slaveholder. 



818 History of Georgia 

The Planters Follow the Small Fanners 

Though the small farmers were the first to move, 
migration was by no means confined to that class. 
Modern methods of preventing the exhaustion of the 
land were little known or used before the Civil War. 
Land was cheap, and the planters found it more 
immediately profitable to use up quickly the native 
fertility of the soil and move on to fresh lands than 
to spend time and money in conserving their acres. 
Hence, the small farmers in a new section would 
barely have time to get settled before the planters 
would come along and buy them out again. The 
rapidity of this movement is indicated by the follow- 
ing quotation from a Georgia historian, writing in 
1829: ^'Almost all the towns on the west side of the 
Ocmulgee River seem to have sprung into existence 
as if by the plastic hand of magic. Four or five 
years ago the whole territory was a solitary wilder- 
ness; no voice was heard except that of the Indian 
hunter; but now industry has converted it into beau- 
tiful plantations and ornamented it with many lovely 
villages."^ The impatience of Georgians to get rid 
of the Creeks can only be understood in the light of 
this sudden expansion of cotton raising. The Creeks 
owned the best cotton lands and were making no 
adequate use of them. Governor Troupes insistence 
in this connection was due to his alarm at seeing 



^ Sherwood, A., Gazateer of Georgia (1829), p. 109. 



History of Georgia 219 

Georgians pass over the Indian country and go into 
Alabama, for the cotton planter did not regard state 
lines. 

Growth of the Cotton Industry 

Statistics show how rapidly the production of cot- 
ton increased as this new land came under cultivation. 
In 1791, before the invention of the gin, Georgia 




An Old Time Spinning Wheel. 
From Coman's "Industrial History' of the United States" (Macmillan). 

produced i,ooo bales of cotton. This was used in 
home manufacture. Many of the old time looms 
are still to be found in the attics of farm houses; 



220 History of Georgia 

indeed, in the mountains of North Georgia hand 
spinning and weaving are still practiced. By the 
beginning of the new century, Georgia's product had 
increased to 20,000 bales; in 181 1 to 40,000; in 1821 
to 90,000, and in 1826 to 150,000. No other state 
equalled Georgia in 1826 in cotton production; prior 
to that time South Carolina had been the leading 
state. 

Summary 

The student will now understand the process by 
which Middle Georgia was settled and why it is 
that the majority of the population of that section 
is black. At first the counties were white, peopled by 
small farmers; then great plantations with numerous 
negroes followed the invention of the cotton gin; 
the planters bought out the small farmers, who 
moved westward in search of new land. In a few 
years the planter exhausted the fertility of his soil 
and then moved westward, again buying out the 
small farmer. This process was continuous through- 
out the South. Black belts formed in all the states 
of the lower South, and the population in such 
regions still remains predominantly black. Of course, 
it must not be supposed that all of the small white 
farmers left any given neighborhood. There were 
at all times great planters, small slaveholders and 
non-slaveholders in every county. But the general 
tendency was as has been described. 



CHAPTER XVIII 

SLAVERY: ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL ASPECTS 

Treatment of Slaves 

The world is coming to understand now much 
better than formerly the true condition of the South- 
ern slaves. During the two decades preceding the 
Civil War, when the feelings of men were wrought 
up to a high tension, it could hardly be expected 
that justice would be done the slaveholder. Northern 
people came into contact with only the most unfor- 
tunate aspects of slavery, such as the arrest of run- 
away slaves and their forcible return to bondage, 
and the unpleasant incidents connected with the slave 
trade. Incidents of cruelty to slaves were not heard 
of as exceptions to the rule of good treatment, but 
as representing the general attitude of owners. Such 
a book as ''Uncle Tom's Cabin" created a powerful 
public opinion against slavery. Southern slave 
owners resented being constantly denounced as 
morally deficient. Many of them would have gladly 
escaped the responsibility of caring for the slaves, 
but were convinced that the negroes would be in a 
worse condition as freedmen. An instance of this 
type of slaveholder was the Reverend J. O. Andrews, 
of Georgia. In 1832 he was elected a bishop in the 

221 



222 History of Georgia 

Methodist church, which at that time had not been 
divided into northern and southern branches. Bishop 
Andrews owned no slaves when elected and never 
bought one in his life, but his wife inherited a num- 
ber of negroes and in this way the bishop became a 
slaveowner. In 1844 the matter of his possessing 
slaves was brought before the general conference of 
his church and he was asked to resign his position 
because he would not give up the slaves. Answering 
the charge brought against him, Bishop Andrews 
said: "Strange as it may seem to you, brethren, I am 
a slaveholder for conscience' sake. I have no doubt 
that my wife would, without a moment's hesitation, 
consent to the manumission of those slaves, if I 
thought proper to ask it. But how am I to free them? 
Some of them are too old to work and are an expense 
to me, and some are little children. Where shall I 
send them? But perhaps I shall be permitted to 
keep these helpless ones. Many of them would not 
go. I believe the providence of God has thrown 
these creatures into my hands and holds me respon- 
sible for their proper treatment."^ These words fairly 
represent the attitude of the vast majority of slave- 
owners in Georgia. Every one knew that there were 
masters who abused their slaves, but such owners 
were held in contempt by the gentlemen of the 
South. 



^ Smith, G. G., Life and Letters of J. O. Andrews, p. 352. 



History of Georgia 223 

Records of Georgia Families 

The plantation records and letters of Georgia 
families, many of which have been collected and 
published/ afford abundant evidence of the great 
care and consideration exercised by slaveholders for 
their servants. Specific rules were laid down as to 
the punishment of slaves. For instance, one planter 
prohibited his overseer from inflicting punishment 
until twenty-four hours after the offense; another did 
not have a driver, but held the overseer responsible 
for the work. A driver was a sort of gang-boss, set 
over a group of slaves to see that they performed 
their tasks. He was a negro of more than common 
mental capacity. Other rules regulated the hours of 
work, required the overseers to inspect the clothes, 
shoes and blankets of the negroes and keep them 
comfortably clad; work in the rain was prohibited, 
and provision was made for numerous holidays. 
Several times a year the owner directed the overseer 
to kill beef for the negroes. The general policy 
was to keep them happy and contented. They 
usually had the right of appeal to the master, an 
important matter, since it afforded a check on arbi- 
trary treatment at the hands of the overseer. It was 
even charged that some overseers allowed the negroes 
to leave their work undone in order to avoid com- 
plaints to the owner. 



^ Phillips, U. B., Plantation and Frontier Documents, 



32-i History of Georgia 

Coast and Upland 

The coast or rice plantations were low, marshy 
and malarious. Few owners had the courage to 
live on their places during the hot season. The 
overseer was necessarily an important person, and 
the rules above mentioned were in nearly every case 
those of coast plantations. In this way planters 
sought to avoid the dangers almost inseparable from 
absenteeism. Overseers as a class were uneducated, 
unrefined and irresponsible. Management of negroes 
was their stock in trade, and, of course, their tempta- 
tion would be to make as great profits as possible. 
In the upcountry, slaves were fewer per owner and 
the planters normally lived on their places, in close 
contact with the laborers. As a consequence, condi- 
tions were better in the cotton planting districts. On 
the other hand the most conscientious efiforts for the 
betterment of the slaves were sometimes found on the 
coast, as in the case of the Association for the Re- 
ligious Instruction of the Negroes, in Liberty County, 
Georgia. The Reverend C. C. Jones, father of the 
historian of that name, spent his life in missionary 
work among the coast negroes. 

Public Sentiment 

The treatment accorded slaves depended in large 
measure on the character of the individual slave- 
holder. If he were so ignorant and brutal as not to 
know his own interests, he might maltreat his slaves. 



History of Georgia 225 

thus reducing their efficiency as workers. Public 
sentiment was strongly against a slaveholder who 
abused his servants, and the consensus of opinion 
among modern scientific students of history is that 
on the whole slaves were well treated. Their hours 
of labor were not as long as those of free laborers m 
the North, their food was quite sufficient to keep 
them in prime condition, their clothes and housing 
as adequate as those of any other laboring people, 
taking into account the difference in climate. At 
the time negro slaves were introduced into America 
in the early 17th century, there was little moral senti- 
ment against slavery, either North or South. As 
time went on the civilized world came to regard 
slavery as a relic of barbarism that ought not to be 
tolerated any longer. Many Southerners sympathized 
with this view and emancipated their slaves; but to 
the vast majority of Southerners wholesale emanci- 
pation seemed to be unthinkable. The ante-bellum 
planters found the slaves already at hand; they were 
convinced that negroes were unfitted for freedom 
and could be made a source of social advantage only 
by being taken care of by white men. It was all 
very well to talk of the blessing of freedom, but 
Southerners could only hear with misgivings any sug- 
gestion of freeing masses of ignorant slaves; and they 
deeply resented constant attacks from the outside 
directed against their own moral character. On the 
whole slaveholders were as religious, moral, high- 



226 History of Georgia 

minded a race of men as ever lived. They felt slave- 
holding as a great responsibility and did everything 
they could for the slaves that was consonant with 
their conception of public safety. 

Slaveholding and Non-slaveholding Families 

The total white population of Georgia in i860 was 
591,550, or about 1 18,000 families. Of these families 
41,084 were slaveholders, leaving the overwhelming 
majority, about 77,000, in the non-slaveholding class. 
But all the slaveholders were not farmers: 6,713 
possessed only one slave each; 4,355 two each; 3,482 
three each. These owners of a few slaves were 
usually residents of towns and kept their slaves as 
household servants. About twenty slaves was the 
number that could be most profitably managed by 
one overseer; and we may take the possession of that 
number as the minimum that would place the farmer 
in the planter class. Of such slaveholders there 
were in Georgia 6,363 in i860. The massing of the 
bulk of the slaves in so few hands indicates the sys- 
tem of agriculture that dominated the state in ante- 
bellum times, namely the plantation. 

The Cotton Plantation 

Cotton growing was admirably suited to slave 
labor. Unlike the rice, indigo and tobacco industries, 
the other types of labor in which slaves have been 
employed in the United States, cotton is not confined 



History of Georgia 221 

to a limited area, but can be produced almost 
anywhere in the state. In the second place, cotton 
production occupies the labor practically all the year, 
thus enabling the planter to avoid supporting his 
laborers over long periods of inactivity. Again, cot- 
ton raising is a rather simple process, lending itself 
readily to routine w^ork, the only sort of exertion 
slaves were capable of. The planting was done by 
hand, the cultivation principally by the hoe and no 
machinery used in the harvesting of the crop. An- 
other reason why cotton raising suited slave labor 
was that each laborer could cultivate a much smaller 
area than if he were raising corn or other cereals, 
and hence the laborers could easily be massed 
together under the eye of the overseer. It was more 
economical to conduct operations on a large scale, 
because expert supervision was absolutely necessary, 
and, as overseers were expensive, it paid to have each 
overseer control a large number of slaves. These 
facts taken together explain the existence of the 
plantation system. 

Cotton Raising a One Crop System 

The profits to be made from cotton raising during 
times of high prices were attractive, and the low 
character of the labor made diversified farming im- 
practicable, so that planters gradually left ofif trying 
to produce anything but cotton. It was a "one crop" 
system. There were some wise planters who produced 



;;^;;3tS History of Georg 



la 



nearly everything they used, but the majority did 
not; and all during the ante-bellum period Georgia 
was a heavy buyer of Western corn, wheat and forage. 

Slow Growth of Manufactures 

Another unfortunate result of the domination of 
"King Cotton" was that the increased demand for 
slaves sent prices soaring. The African slave trade 
was abolished in 1808, so that the planters had to 
depend upon natural increase for slaves. Competi- 
tion for laborers became very keen. In 1800 a prime 
field hand was worth, in Georgia, $300.00. By i860 
the price had advanced to $1,800.00. At the same 
time the constant tendency was for the price of cot- 
ton to fall. In 1800 it brought 24c; in 1830, 17c; 
in 1850, 12.3c; in i860, tic. Hence the planter who 
would keep up his accustomed standard of life had 
to be always increasing his acreage and his force of 
slaves in order to obtain the same income. The 
result was that every available dollar went into cot- 
ton lands and negroes, and little was left for 
investment in manufacturing and other industries. 
On this point a traveller remarked that in Georgia, 
where "there is more life, enterprise, skill and indus- 
try than in any of the old slave commonwealths" ; 
where the natural resources for manufacturing were 
fine; where "land-rent, water power, timber, fuel 
and raw material for cotton manufacturing are all 
much cheaper" than in New England, there was a 



History of Georgia 2'Z\) 

total lack of any diversity of labor, due to the absorp- 
tion of capital in slaves and cotton lands/ Promoters 
found it impossible to sell shares in proposed manu- 
facturing enterprises, because all the spare cash went 
the traditional way. It is not to be inferred that 
there were no manufacturing enterprises in the South. 
Cotton mills were in operation before the war in 
Athens, Augusta, Eatonton, Sparta, Columbus and 
in other towns. The census of i860 credited Georgia 
with 1,890 manufacturing establishments, capitalized 
at $10,890,875. These establishments employed 
11,575 laborers at an annual cost of $2,925,148; the 
value of the product being estimated at $16,925,564. 
As indicating the development since the War, it is 
interesting to note that the census of 1910 shows that 
in Atlanta alone there were manufacturing indus- 
tries capitalized at $30,878,000, three times as much 
as the total for the entire state in i860. But in 
comparison with the industries of the northern states 
these establishments were insignificant in size and 
number. The South did not take a leading part in 
the great economic revolution, which, during the first 
half of the 19th century, transformed England, 
France, Germany and the northern United States 
from agricultural to manufacturing communities. 

Low Character of the Labor 

Of the slavery system in general, it may be said 

^ Olmsted, F. L., Seaboard Slave States, pp. 523-544. Olmsted 
was a northern farmer and student of political econom}'. 



230 History of Georgia 

that slave labor cost the South more than free labor 
would have cost, had it been available. Negroes 
were lazy, inefficient and unintelligent. A noted 
traveller. Sir Charles Lyell,^ was interested in 
Louisiana to find that it took three negroes to cut 
and bind two cords of wood in a day, whereas in 
New York one white man prepared three cords daily. 
He was also told that where negro and white laborers 
were worked together the negro was required to do 
only two-thirds as much work as a white laborer. 
Another reason why slave labor was so expensive 
was that the negro, like all stupid and ignorant 
people, was stubbornly opposed to new ideas. It was 
found impossible to introduce improved methods of 
tillage. At the time when the northern and western 
farmer was using the drill, the horse-hoe, the reaper, 
and was threshing by machinery, the bulk of work 
on Southern plantations was done with an ordinary 
hoe. Planters tried to use labor-saving machinery, 
but the negroes invariably either broke the tools or 
were careful to waste time so that the net result 
would be in favor of the old methods. 

Support of Idle Slaves 

Under a free system, when one desires certain work 
done, a laborer is hired for that particular job or for 
a given length of time, and the employer pays for 



^ Lyell, Sir Charles, Second Visit to the United States, passim. 



History of Georgia 331 

the actual services rendered. Under slavery, it was 
not always possible to keep the laborers at work, but 
they had nevertheless to be maintained while idle. 
This point was stressed by a Northern preacher, 
Nehemiah Adams, who, during a visit to the South, 
observed that the kindness of owners prevented them 
from disposing of superfluous negroes. Susan Dabney 
Smedes, in the Memorials of a Southern Planter, 
says that on her father's plantation the work of the 
women and children and of some of the men 
amounted to so little that he made but little effort 
to utilize it. "It was very laborious to find easy 
work for a large body of inefficient and lazy people, 
and at Burleigh the struggle was given up in many 
cases. The different departments would have been 
more easily and better managed if there had been 
fewer to work." Another element of cost was the 
expense attached to rearing the slave children to the 
age where they could be used, and the support of 
superannuated slaves. 

Effect on the Soil 

The one-crop system and the absence of fertilizers 
were unfortunate for the land. Rotation of crops was 
not practiced and little effort was made to conserve 
the soil. When the areas under cultivation at any 
given moment became less productive by reason of 
the methods of tillage the planters pushed on west- 
ward with their slaves, bought the holdings of small 



232 History of Georgia 

farmers, cut down the trees, used the virgin soil, and 
presently abandoned the country to the mercy of the 
washing rains. A vivid account of Middle Georgia 
is given in a book on the industrial resources of the 
South, edited by a professor in one of the Southern 
colleges. "The native soil of Middle Georgia is a 
rich, argillaceous loam, resting on a firm, clay foun- 
dation. In some of the richer counties nearly all the 
lands have been cut down, and appropriated to 
tillage; a large maximum of which have been worn 
out, leaving a desolate picture for the traveller to 
behold. Decaying tenements, red, old hills, stripped 
of their native growth and virgin soil, and washed 
into deep gullies, with here and there patches of 
Bermuda grass and stunted pine shrubs, struggling 
for subsistence on what was once one of the richest 
soils in America.''^ The state of Georgia is now, 
through her teachers of agriculture, trying to over- 
come the effects of this disastrous system of farming. 
Rotation, diversification and the use of fertilizers, 
cattle raising, dairy farming and like industries are 
revolutionizing the state. 

Effect on Society 

As has already been said, the majority of Georgia 
families owned no slaves. The large-scale planters 
were a small percentage of Georgia farmers. Below 



^ DeBow, J. D. B., The Southern States, 1856, p. 363. 



History of Georgia 233 

them in the social scale was a class of smaller slave 
owners who are said to have been unprosperous. The 
third element in society was the independent, non- 
slaveholding farmer. Among this element of the 
population, constituting the great majority, there 
were striking variations in conditions. It is not true, 
as has usually been said, that all non-slaveholders 
were a destitute class. It is certain that in the 
constant westward march of the planter in search of 
new lands, the independent farmer was dispossessed. 
Constantly on the move, he found it difficult to 
develop a secure, satisfactory agricultural system. 
Many men of this class took positions as over- 
seers on the plantations and in time saved money 
to buy slaves and become planters. Another part of 
the independent farmer class got out of the path of 
the planter and established a strong and sound 
section of small farms, worked intensively and care- 
fully. The counties in the northeast section of the 
state, for instance, afforded homes for many 
thousands of these men, who were, as a rule, thrifty 
and saving. Yet another element of the small 
farmer class, discouraged by the continual encroach- 
ments of the planter, lacking industry and initiative 
to develop their own small farms, unwilling to work 
for wages in competition with slave labor, drifted 
into the pine barrens, waste places and mountains, 
and there led miserable lives. They were entirely 
cut off from contact with the planter class and all it 



234 History of Georgia MA\ 

represented. They knew nothing of the great 
movements in the world about them. The color of 
their skin raised them above the negro, their pride 
of blood and the degradation of labor in a slave 
regime made it impossible for them to do hired 
work. They accumulated nothing, rarely acquired 
even the rudiments of learning, and were utterly dis- 
regarded by the other elements of society. Even the 
slaves themselves on the large plantations held these 
people in contempt. 

The negroes came at the bottom of the ladder. In 
many respects they received more benefit from 
slavery than any other class. Coming to America 
as savages, members of a race which had never con- 
tributed anything to civilization, the enforced labor 
of two hundred years taught a considerable propor- 
tion of them habits of industry. No primitive people 
ever got their upward start under such happy 
auspices as did the American negroes. That many 
thousands of them are now prosperous landowners, 
that tens of thousands are being trained in schools 
for lives of usefulness, while still others have gone 
forth into every sort of industrial work, are facts 
which can only be understood by reference to the 
training of slavery. 

Social Life 

There were many very attractive features in the 
lives of the upper class of Southern ante-bellum 



History of Georgia 235 

society. Though the planters had always hanging 
over them the problem of managing a difficult 
system; though the mistresses of the homes spent 
lives of service, tending the sick, making clothes for 
the slaves and listening to their real and imaginary 
complaints — the slave was simply a child — yet the 
sense of large responsibility produced a race of men 
whose superiors in masterful qualities have never 
existed. With wealth and leisure, the sons of the 
planters went North and to Europe for their educa- 
tion, and, on returning home, naturally entered 
politics and the law. So great was their political 
capacity that the planters and lawyers controlled the 
national government for many years previous to the 
Civil War. 

A cultured, refined race of men, many of whom 
are still with us, the Southern planters threw open 
their doors to men of their own class. Hospitality 
was the universal practice. ^'Nowhere in the world," 
says F. L. Olmsted, writing from the Georgia-Caro- 
lina coast, ^'could a man with a sound body and a quiet 
conscience, live more pleasantly, at least as a guest, 
it seems to me, than here where I am." By living 
in long and intimate contact with the lower race, 
the white men of the South learned the black man's 
character; he valued the essential fidelity of the slave, 
and is not too greatly exasperated at the present-day 
negro's shiftlessness and aversion for work. This 
insight into the nature of the negro gives the southern 



23G History of Georgia 

man a vantage ground of great importance in study- 
ing the race problems resulting from the Civil War. 

Summary 

While it is a well substantiated fact that slaves 
were on the whole well treated, when we look at 
slavery from the point of view of the economic wel- 
fare of the South, the picture is less cheerful. The 
absorption of practically all the available capital in 
the purchase of land and slaves prevented the de- 
velopment of manufacturing, and, in fact, of any 
except agricultural industry. Further, wholesale 
cotton planting with inefficient negro labor resulted 
in a too rapid exploitation of the land. Another 
unfortunate effect was the too great stratification of 
society; opportunity was not sufficiently equal, and 
though a race of masterful and capable men was 
produced by the Southern system, the position of the 
poorer people was not as good as it is now. 

Additional Reading: 

Condition of Negro as a Slave, Smith, C H., History of 
Georgia, Chap. XXXIV. African Slave Trade, Its Origin and 
Growth, Smith, C. H., Chapter XXXIII. The Common People 
and the Aristocracy, Smith, Chapters XXXVI and XXXVII. 



CHAPTER XIX 

POLITICAL HISTORY OF SLAVERY 

The Extension of Slavery 

The legality of slaveholding in the states of the 
Union was never a matter of dispute betw^een the 
North and South. The Constitution recognized the 
institution and guaranteed the protection of slave 
property. But nothing was said in the Constitution 
about slavery in the vast western territory belonging 
to the United States. Congress was empowered to 
make all needful rules and regulations respecting the 
territory or other property of the United States. 
Clearly there could be no more important legislation 
touching these territories than the settling of the 
slavery question, and for many years the right of 
Congress to decide whether a territory should be 
free or slave was not contested. The Civil War was 
the result of a long contest between the free states 
and the slave states over the status of labor in the 
western domain, each section striving to extend its 
labor system to the property held by all the states in 
common. The people of the North, resenting 
slavery as morally wrong and denying the economic 
soundness of the institution, at an early date con- 
ceived the idea of preventing the expansion of the 

237 



238 History of Georgia 

institution into the West. By confining it to the 
South, they thought to doom slavery to a natural 
death. 

Why Extension was a Necessity to the South 

But free access to the West was a necessity in the 
eyes of Southern people. We have seen how the 
quick exhaustion of the soil occasioned a constant 
westward drift of planters with their slaves in search 
of new lands. From the political standpoint, the 
right of indefinite expansion was quite as important. 
In the lower house of Congress, where representa- 
tion is based on population, the North, through im- 
migration and the industrial revolution, had, early 
in the nineteenth century, obtained permanent 
control. In the Senate, however, where each state 
is represented by two votes, the Northern and 
Southern states were for many years equally balanced, 
and the preservation of this balance became a mat- 
ter of great importance to the South as a protection 
against sectional legislation. Southern equality in 
the Senate was maintained by the action of the South 
in blocking the admission of a new state in free 
territory unless at the same time a new state were 
carved out of slave territory. 

Northwestern Ordinance (1787) ; Missouri Compromise 
(1820) ; Admission of Texas (1845) 

The struggle between the advocates and the op- 
ponents of slavery was long and at times bitter. The 



History of Georgia 



239 



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240 History of Georgia 

first legislation affecting the status of slavery in the 
West was the Northwestern Ordinance of 1787. 
which excluded slavery from the soil north of the 
Ohio River and east of the Mississippi. There was 
practically no opposition from any quarter to this 
Ordinance, but a serious sectional conflict came with 
the question of admitting Missouri. In 1819 there 
were eleven free and eleven slave states. Missouri 
desired to enter as a slave state. The North was 
unwilling to disturb this balance so as to give the 
South control over the Senate, and besides was 
strongly disinclined to see slavery cross the Missis- 
sippi River. The question was finally compromised 
by the creation of a new state, Maine, within the 
borders of Massachusetts and admitting it as a free 
state, by admitting Missouri as a slave state, and by a 
provision that no more slave states should be created 
in the Louisiana Purchase north of the southern 
boundary of Missouri. This arrangement was a 
decided victory for the cause of free labor, for only 
a few states could be made from that part of the 
Louisiana Purchase which lay south of Missouri. 

The sectional balance was restored by the admis- 
sion of Texas as a slave state in 1845. The Texas 
question was the leading issue in the presidential 
campaign of 1844. New England and the North 
generally fought the admission of this immense state, 
feeling that the slaveholding interest would thereby 
receive too great an accession of strength. But the 



History of Georgia 2-11 

Democratic Party was successful, Polk was elected, 
and Texas admitted the next year. 

Compromise of 1850 

In 1846 a war broke out with Mexico over a 
dispute as to the boundary between Texas and Mexi- 
co. The United States not only carried her point 
as to the boundary, but took occasion to seize the 
Mexican provinces of California and New Mexico, 
paying for them $15,000,000. Of course, the slavery 
question had to be dealt with anew. So strained had 
the feeling between the sections now become that war 
might have resulted. Senator Clay came forward 
with the last of his compromise measures. While 
the matter of slavery in the new territory was being 
discussed, gold was discovered in California, the ter- 
ritory filled rapidly, and applied for admission as a 
free state. Clay's compromise admitted California 
with a constitution prohibiting slavery, organized 
the remainder of the Mexican cession into the Terri- 
tories of Utah and New Mexico, with nothing said 
as to slavery, and enacted a rigid law to compel the 
North to return to the South runaway slaves. 

The principle applied to Utah and New Mexico 
was a new one. Theretofore Congress had deter- 
mined whether a given territory should be free or 
slave; but now the people who might move to Utah 
and New Mexico were to be given the privilege of 
settling this important matter for themselves. This 



342 



History of Georgia 




Howell Cobb. 
From an engraving lent by Mr. A. B. Caldivell. 



was known as "popular sovereignty" or "squatter 
sovereignty." To the nation at large Clay's 
Compromise seemed the best practical solution of 



History of Georgia 243 

the quarrel, and most of the prominent statesmen 
favored it, among others Calhoun and Webster; and 
in Georgia, Howell Cobb\ Robert Toombs and 
Alexander H. Stephens. These three men were at 
that time representatives from Georgia in Congress, 
Cobb being the Speaker of the House. 

Clay's Compromise in Georgia 

Georgians were at first inclined to oppose the Com- 
promise on the ground that it was unfair to the 
South. A convention was called by Governor Towns 
in 1850 to discuss the subject. The situation was 
critical: radical action on the part of Georgia would 
have gone far to inflame the entire South, as the 



^ Howell Cobb was born in Jefferson County, Georgia, in 181 5. 
Nine years after graduation from the University of Georgia, he 
entered Congress in 1843, retaining his seat until 1851. Though 
only twenty-eight years of age, Mr. Cobb in a short time became 
distinguished in Congress for his familiarity with the rules and his 
skill in debate. He was before long the recognized leader of 
the Southern Party, and was elevated to the Speakership in 1849. 
On the expiration of his term as Governor, 1851 to 1853, Cobb 
returned to Congress. He was an adherent of Buchanan, stumped 
the North in his interest in 1855, and on Buchanan's election, be- 
came Secretary of the Treasury. This post he resigned on the eve 
of the Civil War. Throughout the stormy days of secession, How- 
ell Cobb was a man on whom the attention of the nation was 
fixed. His powerful influence counted heavily in the decision of 
the South to secede from the Union. After four years of service 
as a Major-General in the Confederate Armies, Cobb spent the 
rernaining three years of his life in fighting the reconstruction 
policy of Congress. He died suddenly in 1868, while on a visit 
to New York. 



344 History of Georgia 

position of Georgia statesmen was at that time a 
commanding one. Toombs, Stephens and Cobb, 
though strong ''state rights" men, thought the Com- 
promise the best that could be obtained in the way 
of a settlement of the controversy, and, in their desire 
to stem the tide setting towards war, took the stump 
in Georgia with the view of creating public senti- 
ment for the measure. The result was a happy one. 
The convention which had been summoned for the 
purpose of protesting against the Compromise, 
turned out to have a majority of Union men as dele- 
gates. Instead of doing anything that might have 
widened the growing breach between the sections, 
the convention adopted the "Georgia Platform," 
which declared for the Compromise, but stated that 
that measure was as far as the people of Georgia 
would go. It has been the opinion of historians that 
this action of Georgia probably deferred civil war 
for ten years. Under the leadership of our state, 
public opinion throughout the South set in an op- 
posite direction, and the sentiment in favor of 
secession was for a time quieted. 

Howell Cobb Elected Governor 

The gubernatorial campaign of the following year 
was fought over the Compromise. The advocates of 
the measure, principally members of the Whig 
Party, organized a new party called the Constitu- 
tional Union Party. Howell Cobb announced for 



History of Georgia 245 

governor as their candidate. The opponents of the 
measure also organized a new party, known as the 
Southern Rights Party. Of this organization, 
Charles J. McDonald was the candidate. McDonald 
had already twice been governor of Georgia, having 
been elected as the candidate of the Union Party. 
It is significant of the changes that were coming that 
this eminent man should now run a third time, but 
on totally different principles. Cobb was elected by 
the great majority of 18,000 votes, a remarkable 
indication of the sentiment for peace in the state. 

Kansas-Nebraska Bill 

The peace secured by Clay's Compromise of 1850 
was short-lived. Calhoun died in 1850, Clay and 
Webster in 1852. New men were assuming the 
leadership; they were tired of the compromises of 
the past and longed to see the momentous slavery 
issue settled forever. The fugitive slave law pre- 
vented good feeling between the sections; agitation 
against slavery was daily increasing. The last 
struggle between the sections over the West came 
in 1854, when Senator Douglas, a Northern Demo- 
crat, introduced a bill in the Senate providing for 
the organization of the Territory of Nebraska. 
Reference to the map will show that the whole of 
this vast territory lay north of the southern line of 
Missouri, and, therefore, under the terms of the 
Missouri Compromise was closed to slavery. But 



246 History of Geor-gia 

Douglas' bill provided that any state or states 
organized in this territory should exercise their own 
choice as to slavery; that is to say, he desired to 
apply to this territory the principle of squatter 
sovereignty. Indeed, he claimed that the Com- 
promise of 1850 had repealed the Missouri Com- 
promise. A substitute bill was brought in, creating 
two territories, Kansas and Nebraska, and expressly 
repealing the Missouri Compromise. This bill 
passed both Houses, Southerners voting for a bill 
which gave them more than they had ever dreamed 
of asking, and the Northern Democrats blindly 
following Douglas. Since under the terms of this 
bill the people of the two territories were to settle 
the slavery question, North and South vied with each 
other in sending out immigrants to Kansas, so as to 
obtain the majority. A little civil war broke out 
between the Northern and Southern settlers. 

Dred Scott Decision (1858) 

A famous decision of the United States Supreme 
Court in 1858 still further favored the Southern 
contention in the matter of slavery. In deciding 
whether the slave, Dred Scott, should be given his 
liberty on the ground that his master had taken him 
into free territory, though afterward returning to a 
slave state. Chief Justice Taney, after rendering the 
Court's decision against the negro, went on to express 
the opinion that slaves were property and as such 



History of Georgia 247 

were entitled to all the protection given by the Con- 
stitution to any sort of property. This decision threw 
open all the western territory to slavery, and sus- 
tained what had been the opinion of Southern states- 
men for half a century. 

Decline of the Whig Party 

In 1850 the Whig Party was strong, both North 
and South, but after that time the party rapidly 
broke up. The Northern and Southern wings of the 
party were estranged by the slavery issue. Southern 
Whigs began to desert the party and enter the Demo- 
cratic organization, which had become the strong- 
hold of Southern rights men. Without the aid of 
the South, the Whig Party could do nothing. The 
Kansas-Nebraska Bill hastened this movement to the 
Democratic Party in the South. In 1854 Toombs 
and Stephens, with a large following, went over to 
the Democrats. 

The Republican Party, 1856 

Meanwhile in the North also the slavery conflict 
was breaking up the old party alignments. While 
the South was becoming solidly Democratic, in the 
North a new organization, called the Republican 
Party, sprang into existence, in 1856. The Republi- 
cans were openly hostile to Southern interests, 
especially slavery. Whigs constituted the leading 
element in this organization. In its first national 
convention to nominate a candidate for the presi- 



248 History of Georgia 

dency, the Republicans declared that neither 
Congress, any Territorial Legislature, nor any other 
power had authority ''to give legal existence to 
slavery in any Territory while the present Constitu- 
tion shall be maintained." A clean cut issue was 
made when the Democratic Party in their conven- 
tion took their stand on the principle of absolute 
non-intervention on the part of Congress. The 
Democrats won the election, but the Republicans 
polled a heavy vote, carrying nearly all of the 
Northern states. The North had finally united on 
the issue of slavery. In the four years before the 
next presidential contest, the new organization 
gained strength rapidly. The Dred Scott decision, 
the continued trouble in Kansas, the attempt of John 
Brown to raise a slave insurrection in Virginia, and 
the fugitive slave law, all helped to increase sectional 
feeling. 

Summary 

At the time of the adoption of the Constitution, it 
was left to the individual state to decide whether 
or not it would allow slavery. It was not long, how- 
ever, before difference of opinion arose as to what 
should be the policy of the country in regard to 
slavery in the unorganized territory of the United 
States. Opponents of slavery maintained that as 
Congress had the right to make laws and regulations 
governing the territories, to prescribe their form of 



History of Georgia 249 

territorial government, and the power to admit such 
territories as states or to refuse so to admit them, it 
necessarily followed that Congress had the power 
to legislate on the slavery question. Those who 
desired the extension of slavery declared that the 
Constitution guaranteed the protection of property, 
that slaves were property and that it would be an 
unfair discrimination against the South's peculiar 
form of property to prevent a Southerner from 
migrating to the West and taking his slaves with him. 
As a matter of fact, however. Congress did decide 
the slavery question a number of times; for 
instance, in 1820, when the Missouri Compromise 
was enacted. In 1850, however. Congress changed 
its time-honored policy and decided to leave the 
determining of the slavery question to the inhabi- 
tants of the territories; and in 1858 the Supreme 
Court denied that Congress had any control whatever 
over the territories in this respect. The fight over 
the extension of slavery gradually broke up the old 
party alignments, and by the time of the Civil War 
most of the Northern people had entered the Repub- 
lican Party, while the majority of Southerners had 
become Democrats, the main point of difference be- 
tween them being the question of Congressional 
control over slavery in the territories. 

Additional Reading. 

Sketches of Toombs, Cobb, Stephens, Nisbet: Northen, W. J., 
Men of Mark in Georgia, III. John Brown's Raid: Evans, L. B., 
Essential Facts of American History, pp. 358-359. 



CHAPTER XX 

SECESSION 

Rift in the Democratic Party 

While the Republican Party was solid and united 
in i860, the Democrats in their convention at 
Charleston, S. C, were unable to agree on principles 
or candidates. The Southern members tried to force 
the convention to stand by the Dred Scott decision, 
according to which Congress was obliged to give pro- 
tection to slave property in the territories. The ma- 
jority of the delegates w.ere Northern or Douglas 
Democrats and they would go further than to assert 
the doctrine of squatter sovereignty, namely, that the 
majority of the settlers in a territory should decide 
the slavery question. Unable to secure favorable 
action, the Southern members withdrew. Both the 
regular convention and the ^'bolters" put out a ticket, 
the Northern wing nominating Stephen A. Douglas 
of Illinois for the presidency and Herschel V. John- 
son, of Georgia, for vice-president. The Southern 
wing of the party nominated for president, Senator 
John C. Breckinridge, of Kentucky, vice-president 
during Buchanan's administration, and Joseph Lane, 
of Oregon, for vice-president. 

250 



History of Georgia 251 

The break in the Democratic ranks marked the 
fall of the last national organization. Slavery had 
split all the church organizations, had killed the 
Whig Party and the American or Know-Nothing 
Party, and now the Democrats had finally drifted on 
the rocks. A third party known as the ''Constitu- 
tional Union Party," whose principle was to oppose 
radical action on either side of the controversy, also 
put out a ticket, and the division in the Democratic 
ranks assured the election of Abraham Lincoln, the 
Republican nominee, though the combined opposi- 
tion vote outnumbered his by almost a million. 

Secession Follows Lincoln's Election 

In the eyes of Southerners, Lincoln's election 
meant that the government of the country would be 
in the hands of men determined not to give them 
equal rights under the Constitution. This was the 
first time in the history of the Union that a section 
as such had elected a president on a programme of 
open enmity to another section. The South believed 
that her interests and rights would receive no con- 
sideration whatever from the Republicans. President 
Lincoln assured Alexander H. Stephens in a letter 
that the Republican Party had no idea of interfering 
with slavery in the states. Stephens replied that the 
disquietude of the South did not arise from fear that 
slavery in the states would be attacked; but from the 
fact that the triumphant Republican Party had as 



252 History of Georgia 

its central idea the denial to Southerners of equal 
rights in the settlement of the West. He said: 'The 
leading object seems to be simply, and wantonly, if 
you please, to put the institutions of nearly half the 
states under the ban of public opinion and national 
condemnation.^'^ 

Secession Not a Southern Invention 

In the early days of the Union, the right of seces- 
sion, or voluntary and peaceful withdraw^al from the 
Union, w^as generally recognized. The original 
thirteen states had voluntarily entered into the Union. 
There w^as no compulsion in the matter: a state's 
right to remain outside of the Union had been 
conceded. It w^as just as freely admitted that a state 
could w^ithdraw^, if she felt that the Union brought 
her more disadvantage than benefit. In 1814 the 
New England States sent delegates to Hartford to 
discuss the advisability of seceding on account of 
their opposition to the War of 1812, which was crip- 
pling New England's commerce. In 1843, John 
Quincy Adams, a former president of the United 
States, had stated that in his opinion the admission 
of Texas would fully justify disunion; and again in 
1845, William Lloyd Garrison, the abolitionist, had 
suggested that Massachusetts lead a secession move- 
ment. Secession was not, therefore, a southern 
invention. 



^ Stephens, A. H., War Between the States, II, p. 266. 



History of Georgia 253 

Northern Opinion Changes : Southern Opinion Remains 
Fixed 

Why, then, was the North willing to go to war 
in i860 in order to preserve the Union? It is not 
difficult to find an answer. 

Since the formation of the Union twenty new 
states had been added. The new states of the North 
and West had been peopled by immigrants from 
Europe, who poured into this country by thousands 
after 1842. The years 1846 and 1847 had been 
famine years in Ireland, while in 1848 many Eu- 
ropean countries were involved in political revolu- 
tions. From 1849 to i860 immigrants came in at the 
rate of 300,000 per annum. These men fled to escape 
famine or despotism; they came to a land of Canaan, 
where political equality was tendered every man, 
where his children might receive an education, and 
where religious liberty was a matter of course. They 
came not to any individual state; indeed, the very 
names of the states were doubtless unknown to them; 
but they came to the Union, and naturally were ready 
to fight for the Union in 1861. The new states 
of the Southwest, however, had been peopled by 
planters moving westward with their slaves. No 
part of the immigration from Europe reached the 
South, since the foreigners were unwilling to go to a 
section where labor was said to be degraded by 
slavery. The new states of the North and West were 
much more populous and wealthy than the new states 



254 History of Georgia 

of the South. The main strength of the Union dur- 
ing the Civil War came from the West. The im- 
mense foreign population of the West knew nothing 
of the great constitutional argument over secession, 
while the planters in going to the Southwest had car- 
ried with them not only their slaves, but the political 
ideals of the fathers of the Republic. 

The other factor in the growth of nationalism 
in the North was the development of railroads and 
the spread of manufacturing. These agencies 
reduced distances, brought the people of widely 
separated states into closer contact, and promoted 
community of interests. The South, largely cut off 
from all these movements, very naturally retained 
the political views of the framers of the Constitution; 
and while in their view secession was an incontestable 
right under the Constitution, the mass of voters in 
the North had grown away from the idea. 

Not a War Against Slavery 

The Civil War was not a war primarily for the 
preservation or destruction of slavery. Woodrow 
Wilson says, '^Had the war been short and immedi- 
ately decisive for the Union, the federal power would 
not have touched slavery in the states."^ The 
emancipation of the slaves in 1863 was a war meas- 
ure, pure and simple, without legality, and intended 

^Wilson, Woodrow, Division and Reunion, p. 226 (in Epochs 
of American History). 



History of Georgia 255 

to Stimulate the Northern forces. The slow progress 
of the war, conscription of soldiers and the rioting 
it occasioned, and the interruption of commerce, had 
caused opposition in the North to the war. The zeal 
of the North was flagging. Lincoln emancipated 
the slaves with the idea of instilling new purpose 
into the hearts of his soldiers. He also intended to 
put the South on the wrong side of a moral question, 
that is to say, to make the war a moral rather than 
a political struggle, and thus deprive the South of 
the sympathy and possible assistance of foreign 
powers. Of course, slavery was at the bottom of this 
instance of the assertion of the right to secede, and to 
that extent was the cause of the war; but any other 
sectional conflict might have brought secession. 

The i860 Election in Georgia 

In the presidential contest of i860 the mass of 
Georgia ballots were cast for Breckinridge and Lane, 
representing the extreme Southern views. Some 
of our strongest men supported Douglas, others. 
Bell. A. H. Stephens, E. A. Nisbet and Hiram 
Warner were Douglas men, while Benjamin H. Hill 
was the most important supporter of Bell and 
Everett, on the Constitutional Union ticket. The 
result of the election showed 51,893 votes for Breck- 
inridge and Lane; 42,855 for Bell and Everett, while 
Douglas and Johnson were a bad third with 11,580. 
These numbers may be taken as an indication of the 



256 History of Georgia 

Strength of the union sentiment in the state as op- 
posed to the secession feeling. The pronounced 
southern rights men voted for Breckinridge and 
Lane; the moderates for Bell and Everett or 
Douglas. 

Stephens and the Union Cause 

Though the election of Lincoln increased the 
agitation for secession, there was a strong element in 
Georgia against disruption. A number of counties 
sent to the legislature resolutions against disunion. 
Such powerful leaders as Stephens/ Hill, H. V. 



^ Alexander Ha?niIton Stephens ranks among the leading states- 
men of the ante-bellum period. Feeble in body, unfitted for the 
hardships of the camp, his fame was largely won on the floor of 
Congress and in the realm of constitutional history. His two-vol- 
ume work called "The War Between the States" has been pro- 
nounced the most authoritative exposition of the Southern side of 
the causes which produced the great struggle. Stephens was born 
in Taliaferro County in 1812. He was very poor and obtained his 
education at the University of Georgia with the assistance of a 
church society. He was graduated with first honors in 1832. His 
first political activity was in opposition to Nullification, as tending 
to disrupt the Union. Stephens's first speech in the Legislature of 
Georgia secured the passage of the bill for the establishment of the 
Western & Atlantic Railroad. Entering Congress in 1843, when 
the agitation over the extension of slavery was at its height, Steph- 
ens came into prominence for his advocacy of measures which 
seemed to him to promote the cause of the Union. With Cobb and 
Toombs, he threw the weight of Georgia in favor of Clay's com- 
promise. He defended the principle of squatter sovereignty. 
Though opposed to the War, when the die was cast, he followed his 
State and became a leader in the councils of the new government. 
After the War, Stephens was elected Professor of Political Science 



History of Georgia 



257 




Alexander Hamilton Stephens. 
From an engraving lent by Mr. A. B. Cald'well. 



258 History of Georgia 

Johnson, and Dr. Lovick Pierce opposed secession. 
Stephens made the most notable effort of his life in his 
speech before the Georgia legislature on November 
14, 1860/ His argument represents the viewpoint of 
Southern unionists more clearly than any other 
utterance of the time. In brief, he said: The con- 
stitutional election of no man to the office of president 
is a sufficient excuse for secession. We are pledged 
to maintain the Constitution, and to withdraw for 
such a reason would put us in the wrong. It has 
been said that President Lincoln's principles and 
policy are against the Constitution, and that if he 
carries them into execution it will be destructive of 
our rights. We must wait, however, and see what 
he will do, and not anticipate his actions. Speaking 
for myself, said Stephens, I do not expect Lincoln to 
do anything hostile to the South. There are many 
checks to prevent his acting in an arbitrary and un- 
constitutional manner. In the House there will be a 
majority of thirty against Lincoln, in the Senate a 
majority of four. Lincoln's election, then, is practi- 
cally a bugbear, so far as injuring the South is con- 
cerned. When it becomes definitely clear that the 
honor and equality of Georgia cannot be maintained 



and Historj' at the University of Georgia, but declined on account 
of ill health. On the recovery of his strength, he again entered 
Congress, in 1874, remaining until 1882. He was then made Gov- 
ernor of the State and died while in office. 

^ Stephens, War Between the States, II, pp. 279-300. 



History of Georgia 



259 




Robert Toombs. 
From an engraving lent by Mr. A. B. CaldivelL 



260 History of Georgia 

in the Union, then I am ready to withdraw. Stephens 
suggested that a convention be summoned in Georgia 
to decide the question of secession. 

Secession Convention, 1861 

In accordance with Stephens's suggestion, a call 
was issued for the election of members to a State 
Convention. Of the Secessionists, Robert Toombs^ 
wielded the most powerful influence in the South at 



^ Robert Toombs J in some ways the most striking figure In 
Georgia in the ante-bellum period, was born in Wilkes County, 
Georgia, in 1810. He died at the age of seventy-five at his home 
in Washington. He was a student, but not a graduate, of the 
University of Georgia. After preparation for the law at the Uni- 
versity of Virginia, he was admitted at twenty to the bar by a 
special act of the Legislature. Toombs entered Congress in 1844 
as a Whig. His first speech compelled his recognition as one 
of the best debaters of that body. Laying aside for the time his 
extreme state rights convictions, Toombs advocated Clay's Com- 
promise of 1850 and contributed as much as any other single per- 
son to its adoption by the people of the South. Toombs was made 
United States Senator in 1853 ''^"^1 held the position until the War 
necessitated the withdrawal of all Southerners from Congress. 
He w^as a man of commanding personality and appearance, a 
born leader of men, an uncompromising fighter for what he be- 
lieved to be right. During the War, Toombs held a Commis- 
sion as Brigadier-General. He fled to Cuba. England and France 
at the end of the War, but returned in 1867. Never becoming 
reconciled to the result of the War, he declined to take the oath of 
allegiance to the United States, and died without having regained 
his political rights. He was a member of the Constitutional Con- 
vention of 1877, which made the Constitution which is still in 
force in Georgia, and in the Convention obtained the passage of a 
resolution which resulted in the establishment of the Railroad 
Commission. 



History of Georgia 



261 









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V^'oTEs OF Delegates in the Secession Convention, Traced to the Coun- 

TIES Which They Represented. Shaded Counties for Secession ; 

White, Against; Those Marked + Divided Their Vote. 

Adapted from Phillips, U. B., "Georgia and State Rights." 



large. The other notable advocates of disunion 
were Howell Cobb, Thomas R. R. Cobb, Governor 
Joseph E. Brown, Francis S. Bartow and Eugenius 



262 Histojy of Georgia 

A. Nisbet. The total vote cast in the election for 
delegates to this convention was 87,366. Of this num- 
ber 50,243 were for secession; 37,123 against seces- 
sion. A map of the vote shows that the bulk of the 
secession delegates came from the larger towns and 
sections where planter influence was predominant, 
and that the mountaineers and independent farmer 
element voted for the Union. The vote in the 
counties surrounding the residence county of indi- 
vidual leaders reflected the sentiment of the leaders, 
whether unionist or secessionist. 

The convention included in its membership prac- 
tically the whole of the sound and intelligent leader- 
ship of Georgia. Judge Nisbet introduced the 
resolution in favor of secession on January 18, 1861. 
Stephens and Johnson ofifered a substitute, proposing 
an ordinance inviting the Southern States to a con- 
vention; announcing the intention of Georgia to 
leave the Union, unless the Northern States would 
repeal statutes intended to nullify the fugitive slave 
law; and stating that Georgia would make common 
cause with the states that had already seceded, should 
an attempt be made to coerce them. The object of 
this substitute was to see whether the majority of the 
delegates were in favor of immediate secession or of 
temporizing. Nisbet's resolution was carried by a 
vote of 166 to 130.^ On the following day the Seces- 



1 Phillips, U. B., Georgia and State Rights. Chap. VIII. 



History of Georgia 263 

sion Ordinance was presented and passed by a vote 
of 208 to 89, many opponents of immediate secession 
casting their votes for the Ordinance, since it was 
certain to be carried. The disagreement among the 
delegates was not due to divergent opinions as to the 
right of secession, but rather as to the advisability of 
immediate action. 

Thomas R. R. Cobb and Secession 

Probably the most powerful argument made be- 
fore the people of Georgia and the convention in 
favor of immediate secession was that of Thomas 
R. R. Cobb:' "We can make better terms out of the 
Union than in it." In The War Between the States, 
Stephens expressed the opinion that at least two- 
thirds of the men who voted for the Ordinance of 
Secession did so not with any idea of war, but because 
they hoped to reestablish the Union on a sounder basis 
and believed this object could be best effected by 

^ Thomas R. R. Cohbj the young brother of General Howell 
Cobb, was born in Jefferson County in 1823, and was killed at 
the battle of Fredericksburg, in Virginia, in 1862. He was gradu- 
ated with first honors from the University of Georgia in 1841. 
Though a man of remarkable mental gifts, Cobb did not enter pub- 
lic life until the secession movement began in i860. He was a 
lawyer by profession and devoted himself to active practice and to 
studies in connection with the law. His Digest of Georgia Laws 
was an able work, while the Civil Code of Georgia, of 1861, of 
which he was the principal compiler, was one of the first works 
of the kind ever issued. He also wrote a History of Slavery. But 
for Mr. Cobb's earnest advocacy, it may well be questioned 
whether Georgia would have seceded from the Union in 1861. 



364 History of Georgia 

withdrawing from the Union and treating in the 
capacity of sovereign communities with the North-^ 
ern states. 

Montgomery Convention of the Seceded States 

As soon as the ordinance had passed, all Georgians 
united in support of secession. A convention of 
delegates from the seceding states met in Montgomery 
in February, 1861. Georgia sent ten delegates, 
among them Stephens, Toombs, Howell and T. R. 
R. Cobb, Bartow, Nisbet, and Hill. Stephens said 
that though he had been a member of sixteen Con- 
gresses, he had never been associated with an abler 
body of men. 'They were not such men as revolu- 
tions or civil commotions usually bring to the 
surface. They were men of substance, as well as of 
solid character, men of education, of reading, of 
refinement, and well versed in the principles of 
government." 

Georgians in the Confederate Convention 

Howell Cobb was made presiding officer of the 
convention. The election of a president of the Con- 
federacy was a delicate matter. It was generally 
expected that a Georgian would receive this honor 
and Robert Toombs seemed to be the logical man; 
but he declined to allow his name to go before the 
convention. The Georgia delegation then thought 
of proposing Howell Cobb, but It became known 



History of Georgia 265 

that delegates from two or three states had expressed 
themselves adversely to him, on account of old party 
animosities. It was necessary to select a man who 
w^ould be able to command the support of all ele- 
ments, and Jefferson Davis was chosen as being a 
conservative man without political enmities of the 
sort that Howell Cobb had incurred. Stephens was 
made vice-president. Robert Toombs became the 
first secretary of state, but resigned in a few months 
to enter active service as a brigadier-general. An- 
other Georgian, Thomas R. R. Cobb, was appointed 
on the committee to draft the Constitution of the 
Confederacy, and the document was written by his 
hand. 

Summary 

The American people had been accustomed 
throughout the history of the Union to threats of 
secession. Secession was not by any means a Southern 
invention. It became apparent in i860 that it was 
impossible for the two sections of the country to con- 
tinue their quarrels indefinitely. The election of 
Lincoln was the signal for secession. Georgia was 
reluctant to withdraw from the Union; a large 
minority of the convention were in favor of some less 
drastic action. Alexander H. Stephens was the 
leader of the element opposed to immediate seces- 
sion. He thought the South should wait for some 
act of hostility on the part of the Republican Party 



26Q History of Georgia 

and not anticipate trouble. As soon as the states of 
the lower South had withdrawn from the Union, 
representatives of the seceding states met in Mont- 
gomery to create a new Confederacy. Georgians 
took a prominent part in the work of this conven- 
tion, its president being Howell Cobb of Georgia. 

Additional Reading: 

Why Georgia withdrew from the Union: Smith, C. H., His- 
tory of Georgia, Chapter XXXV. 

Slavery and Secession: Harris, J. C, Stories of Georgia, pp. 
251-258. 

Sketches of Stephens, Toomhs, Cobb, Nisbet, and others: Nor- 
then, W. J., Men of Mark. Vol. III. 



CHAPTER XXL 

A HALF CENTURY OF PROGRESS, 1810-1860 

Population 

The fifty years preceding the Civil War was a 
time of great progress in Georgia. In those years 
the Indian frontier disappeared, and the entire region 
of North and Middle Georgia was settled. The 
population of the state increased from 252,433 in 
1 8 10 to 1,057,286 in i860. Negroes were 44 per 
cent of the total population at the latter date. Most 
of the negroes were in the possession of the planters 
of the Black Belt and the coast. Non-slaveholders 
were not numerous in the Black Belt, as conditions 
were against them in that section. They lived prin- 
cipally in the great region north of the Belt. The 
mountainous regions of the extreme north and the 
pine barrens of South Georgia were very sparsely 
settled. 

Agriculture 

In 1 8 10 Georgia was a state of small farmers, 
except on the seacoast, where rice growing, being 
the principal industry, large plantations were to be 
found. During the succeeding fifty years cotton plant- 

267 



268 History of Georgia 

ing became the leading industry. The total number 
of farms in i860 was 62,003; the average size of the 
farms was 430 acres. As there were only 3,594 
farms containing more than 500 acres, it is clear that 
there was a small number of large plantations, and a 
large number of small farms. This is as we would 
naturally expect, since the number of slaveholders 
was small in proportion to the total white population. 
While cotton planting tended to absorb the atten- 
tion of the farmers to the exclusion of diversified 
crops, the extent of this evil has been exaggerated. 
The statistics of i860 sufficiently disprove the idea 
that there was no diversification of farming. Of 
cotton, 701,840 bales were produced in i860, an in- 
crease of 40 per cent over the production of 1850. 
The Black Belt counties produced 82.87 per cent 
of all this cotton. Georgia also raised 2,544,913 
bushels of wheat; 30,776,293 bushels of corn, besides 
quantities of dairy products, forage crops and vege- 
tables; while $10,908,204 worth of animals were 
slaughtered for food. Georgia ranked next to South 
Carolina as a rice producing state, raising 52,507,652 
pounds in i860, nearly one-third of all the rice grown 
in the United States. 

Manufacturing 

Georgians were so deeply engrossed in producing 
cotton in i860 that little time or money was available 
for manufacturing enterprises. It was difficult to 



History of Georgia 269 

set up successful manufactures for two reasons. In 
the first place, the capital which normally would 
have been invested in such industries was in Georgia 
and the South generally used to purchase slaves. 
And, secondly, even if capital had not been scarce, 
it was almost out of question to get sufficient labor 
to man the mills. Negroes could not be used in this 
work, foreign immigrants did not come to the South, 
and land was so plentiful that native born whites 
found it easy to possess a farm and be independent 
of the mill owners. In spite of these difficulties, 
cotton and woolen mills and iron works were estab- 
lished in Georgia as early as 1829. Most of them 
failed on account of the high price of labor. But by 
i860 considerable progress in this line had been 
made. The census of that year credits the state with 
33 cotton mills, representing an investment of 
$2,126,103; employing 2,813 hands; with an annual 
product of $2,371,207 — an increase of 69.9 per cent 
over the returns of 1850. In this branch of industry 
Georgia ranked first among the Southern states. In 
the same year Massachusetts, the leading Northern 
state, had 217 cotton mills, with an annual output of 
$38,004,255. Only Virginia surpassed Georgia In 
the woolen industry in the South. Our state had 
eleven mills; Massachusetts, 134; Pennsylvania, 270; 
New York, 140; Virginia, 45. 

In addition, there were establishments in Georgia 
for manufacturing shoes, hats, carriages, wagons, 



270 History of Georgia 

leather, flour, turpentine and many other articles. 
Industry was not so completely at a standstill as has 
sometimes been represented, but more floating capital 
and the presence of a more abundant labor supply 
enabled the North to outstrip the South in manu- 
facturing. 

Travel and Transportation Before the Era of Railroads 
As soon as the cotton industry began to transform 
Middle Georgia from a wilderness to a great staple- 
producing area, the need of better transportation 
became a pressing problem. The Piedmont region 
is peculiarly situated. Macon, on its southern edge, is 
nearly two hundred miles from the coast, and be- 
tween the Piedmont and the coast lay the vast unde- 
veloped pine barren region of southeast Georgia. 
The problem was to get cotton to the coast and 
supplies from the coast to the interior. On the 
north lay the mountainous section, wholly unde- 
veloped and without transportation facilities of any 
kind. As has been pointed out, the Piedmont is a 
hilly country in which the streams are rapid and 
unnavigable above the fall line. Under these condi- 
tions, there was only one solution of the difliculty, 
namely, the building of market towns at the ''heads 
of navigation," or the points at which the streams 
leave the hills and commence their long unbroken 
journey to the sea. Hence the importance of Au- 
gusta, Macon and Columbus. At these places mer- 



History of Georgia 271 

chants established themselves and city life grew up. 
Rough country roads radiated into the agricultural 
regions about. In the fall the cotton planters hauled 
their cotton to the towns, sold it and obtained their 
supplies. 

River Transportation; Pole Boats 

From Augusta and the other similarly located 
towns regular lines of flatboats were employed in 
floating the cotton to the coast. Augusta sent her 
cotton directly to Savannah; from Macon and Mill- 
edgeville the cotton went to Darien, and thence to 
Savannah. These boats carried some five hundred 
bags of cotton. The return trip was painful toil, as 
the boats had to be forced slowly upstream by poles. 
Gangs of slaves were employed in this work, and 
about ten miles per day was made by a c^ew of fif- 
teen to twenty men. Augusta was by far the most 
important of the inland markets, handling the cot- 
ton of most of Georgia east of the Oconee River, as 
well as that of western South Carolina. 

Steamboats 

Robert Fulton invented the steamboat in 1807, and 
within ten years this new form of transportation was 
in use in Georgia. The first steamer to appear was 
owned by a Mr. Howard, of Savannah, who began 
the river service in 18 16. The Savannah Repub- 
lican, in April, 18 16, contained the following notice 



272 History of Georgia 

of the opening of steamboat transportation on the 
Savannah River: 

"The Steamboat, Enterprise, with a numerous concourse of citi- 
zens on board, started from Howard's wharf yesterday morning 
at 12 o'clock on a party of pleasure. She moved beautifully 
through the water, and was certainly an interesting curiosity to 
those who have not seen steam vessels elsewhere. To behold a 
large and apparently unwieldy machine, without oars or sails, pro- 
pelled through the element by an invisible agency at a rate of four 
miles an hour, is indeed a novel spectacle." 

Steamboats, of course, greatly facilitated trade, as 
they made the trip to Augusta in four or five days 
and carried 800 to 1,000 bales of cotton, besides pas- 
sengers. The period of greatest steamboat activity 
was in the twenties, when ten to fifteen boats were 
engaged in the Savannah-Augusta trade. The 
freight rate was 37I4 cents to $1.00 per bale. The 
extent of Augusta's cotton business is indicated by 
the fact that as early as 1830 she had sixteen cotton 
warehouses. Her cotton receipts in 1825 were 143,- 
633 bales; in i860 the receipts were much larger, 
though the exact number of bales is unknown. 

Macon was second as an interior cotton market. 
In 1826 the town received 47,065 bales; in i860, 
102,000. The freight rate to Darien was 62% to 
75 cents per hundred pounds. 

Savannah was the only port of importance. In 
1 825- 1 826 she exported 190,578 bales of cotton; in 
i860, 314,084 bales. 



History of Georgia 273 

Stage Coaches 

There was a net work of roads over Georgia early 
in the nineteenth century, connecting the principal 
towns. Regular schedules were published in the 
newspapers. From Augusta to the capital, Mill- 
edgeville, a coach ran six days in the week, the fare 
being $10.00. A similar charge was made from Mill- 
edgeville to Columbus. From Athens to Augusta 
the trip was made twice a week, at a charge of $7.00. 
The duty of keeping up the roads was in the hands 
of the local county authorities. In the early thirties 
the state worked a force of two hundred slaves under 
a superintendent in making and improving roads, 
but this was discontinued in 1835. 

Railroads 

The state was naturally retarded by the primitive 
methods of travel and transportation, and every one 
hailed with delight the proof that railroads were 
practicable. As early as 1831 a convention was held 
at Eatonton to discuss the feasibility of a railroad in 
Georgia. From that time on interest was unflagging. 
The earliest roads in Georgia were the Georgia, the 
Central of Georgia and the Western and Atlantic.^ 

The Georgia Railroad and Banking Company 

The plans which resulted in the building of the 
Georgia Railroad originated in Athens. The idea 

^ Phillips, U. B., History of Transportation in the Eastern Cot- 
Ion Belt. Contains history of pre-raiiroad and railroad eras. 



274 Histo?'y of Georgia 

was to connect with the Charleston and Hamburg 
Railroad, which had been completed in 1833 from 
Charleston to Augusta. A stock company was or- 
ganized and a charter obtained in 1833, the capital 
stock being one and a half millions. Mr. James 
Camak was the first president. Grading was begun 
in 1835, and by December, 1837, forty-two miles of 







An Early Railroad Train. 
From Coman, "Industrial History of the United States." 

rail had been laid. Post coaches were established 
to cooperate with the road. Passengers would leave 
Augusta, go as far as the rails extended and then 
transfer to the four-horse coaches for the remainder 
of the journey to Athens, Greensboro, Gainesville 
and other places. The line was completed to Greens- 
boro in 1838 and to Madison and Athens in 1841. 

Central of Georgia Railroad 

The Central of Georgia was largely the product 
of Savannah initiative. Our seaboard city became 
interested in railroads through fear that the road 



History of Geoj-gia 275 

from Augusta to Charleston would result in Savan- 
nah's losing the Augusta trade. In 1833 ^ citizens' 
committee of Savannah, of which John McPherson 
Berrien was chairman, took up the matter. A char- 
ter was obtained in 1833, authorizing the construc- 
tion of a line to Macon. This road was a tremendous 
undertaking, as it was necessary to bridge over a great 
area of infertile and sparsely settled country, from 
which no revenue could be expected, before the rich 
piedmont was reached. Delays followed, and in 
1836 a new charter was obtained. Mr. W. W. Gor- 
don was the first president. By May, 1838, sixty- 
seven miles of track had been completed. Macon 
was reached in 1843. The total cost of the 190 miles 
of track was $2,500,000. From Macon branch lines 
soon ran out to tap the rich agricultural regions of 
Middle Georgia. 

The Western and Atlantic 

The Western and Atlantic was built by the state 
of Georgia and is still a state-owned road. The 
project had its birth in a scheme to connect Georgia 
with the great West, as the name implies. The idea 
was to extend the Central from Macon and the 
Georgia from Union Point to meet at a point on the 
Chattahoochee River, the present site of Atlanta, 
and run the new road thence to Chattanooga on the 
Tennessee River. In this way it was hoped that 
Georgia would get part of the traffic of the West, 



276 



History of Georgia 



Chattanoopa 




\ 
AtR'ens 



Washinpton' 

O 



iatonton 



Forsyth' 



i^^' 



\\\e 



Thomasti 



vAugusta 




Pailroads of Georgia in i860. 



which at that time had not definitely been turned 
to Chicago and other northern cities. The work, 
authorized by a legislative act of 1836, was begun 



History of Georgia 277 

in 1839 and completed, after many delays, in 1851. 
This road is 138 miles in length. The extensions 
of the Georgia and the Central to Atlanta were com- 
pleted in 1845. 

The development of railways in Georgia was very 
rapid. After these three main lines had been com- 
pleted, branches soon extended to the principal 
towns in every direction. The accompanying map 
shows the railway system of Georgia as it was in i860. 



Education. The Academy 

The material development of Georgia in the first 
half of the nineteenth century was far more rapid 
than her educational progress. There was no system 
of general public education in the state prior to the 
Civil War. A law dating back to Revolutionary 
times authorized the setting apart of wild lands in 
every county for the maintenance of academies. 
More than two hundred of these academies had been 
established before i860. In addition, there were a 
number of private academies. The academy was 
the counterpart of the modern high school and was 
supposed to give instruction in the higher branches, 
especially Latin, Greek and Mathematics. Some 
of these schools were excellent, but many were very 
inefficient. They were the constant object of criti- 
cism on the part of people interested in the educa- 
tional welfare of the state. 



278 History of Georgia 

Old Field Schools 

The elementary schools of the rural districts were 
known as ''Old Field Schools." An eminent 
Georgian who attended one wrote an interesting de- 
scription of the institution/ We are told that the 
schoolhouse was usually a one-room log cabin, with 
a single door, two windows and hard benches for 
seats. School began early and lasted all day, with 
two hours in the middle of the day for dinner and 
sport. Spelling, reading and arithmetic, with a lit- 
tle geography, constituted the course of study. The 
pupils studied aloud, silence being taken to indicate 
idleness. Practice in declaiming was regular and 
the pupils were required to memorize a good deal 
of such literature as was available. The teachers 
were usually hopelessly ignorant of anything beyond 
the rudiments. They are represented as a wandering 
class of ne'er-do-wells, too lazy and worthless to 
make a living in any other way, and not commonly 
remaining in one school longer than a few months. 
They were petty tyrants, using the rod with great 
freedom. There was no state board to examine 
teachers to test their qualifications; they were paid 
no regular salaries, but depended upon fees paid by 
the pupils. 



^ Johnson, Richard Malcolm, Early Educational Life in Middle 
Georgia. Report U. S. Comr. of Education, 1894-5, Vol. 2. 



History of Georgia 279 

Poor School Fund 

Children whose parents were too poor to pay the 
tuition might take advantage of a "poor school fund," 
created by the legislature in 1817. This fund con- 
sisted of the interest on $250,000, which was divided 
among the counties in proportion to their white pop- 
ulation. At a later time, 1843, the county courts 
were authorized to levy an extra tax to supplement 
the state fund for educating the children of the poor. 
It was made the duty of the magistrates to report 
to the county courts the names of children in their 
districts who were entitled to the benefit of this fund. 
The scheme worked badly. Magistrates were lax in 
keeping proper rolls of those who should have re- 
ceived the fund; not more than three-fourths of the 
children of the poor ever got on the rolls, and 
not more than half of those enrolled entered the 
schools. It was felt to involve disgrace to accept this 
sort of aid. ''The very law subjects every patron of 
these schools to the jeer of pauperism," said a con- 
temporary writer. Consequently, in i860, there were 
in Georgia 16,900 men and 26,784 women of the 
white race who could neither read nor write. 

Manual Labor Schools 

A more hopeful movement was begun in 1833 with 
the establishment, near Greensboro, of a manual la- 
bor school, under the auspices of the Baptists of 
Georgia, to teach practical agriculture. This school 



280 



History of Georgia 



grew into Mercer University. A similar institu- 
tion was opened by the Presbyterians, near Athens, 




Mercer University, Main Building. 

also in 1833, but was removed to Gwinnett County. 
Two other manual labor schools were established in 
1835, one located at Midway, near Milledgeville, 



History of Georgia 281 

under Presbyterian control; the other at Covington, 
under Methodist control. The Midway school be- 
came Oglethorpe University. The Methodist school 
grew quickly into a position of some importance. An 
account of the institution written in 1837 says that 
when the school opened in 1835 there were thirty 
students and two teachers, and that in two years the 
students had increased to 120, including 76 boarders; 
there were five teachers, and the equipment consisted 
of 12 student houses, homes for the teachers and 
other buildings, worth altogether $14,000. The 
trustees owned 2,000 acres of land and a considerable 
amount of livestock. When Emory College was 
opened in 1838, this school was made a branch of 
the new college. The manual labor schools flourished 
in the thirties, but the vocational idea was soon 
abandoned, and the schools either developed into 
classical colleges or were discontinued. No con- 
temporary explanation has been found of the failure 
of this interesting experiment. 

Higher Education 

The roll of colleges in Georgia was rather formid- 
able before the war, as is now the case. The oldest 
of the men's colleges was the University of Georgia, 
chartered in 1784.^ Teaching actually commenced 
in 1 801. The Presbyterians in 1838 established Ogle- 

^ See p. 133 for sketch of Abraham Baldwin, originator of the 
plan to found the Universit}^ 



282 



History of Georgia 




Emory College, Seney Hall. 



History of Georgia 283 

thorpe University, near Milledgeville. This insti- 
tution closed its doors at the outbreak of the war, 
and was not revived afterward. Emory College 
dates from 1836, opening in 1838. Mercer's^ char- 
ter is dated 1837, the college opening two years later. 
For women there w^ere seven or eight colleges, the 
most important of which was Wesleyan, chartered 
in 1836, actual teaching beginning in 1839. 

The Supreme Court 

The Supreme Court of Georgia was organized in 
1845, with Judge Joseph Henry Lumpkin as chief 
justice and Eugenius A. Nisbet and Hiram Warner 
as associates. Judge Lumpkin was a famous lawyer, 
a graduate of Princeton and founder of the Law 
School of the University of Georgia. 

Election of 1857 

The last election held in Georgia before the com- 
mencement of the war was that of 1857. ^^ ^^^ 
Democratic convention a deadlock occurred between 
the adherents of the several candidates, Henry La- 
mar, Hiram Warner, John H. Lumpkin, James 
Gardner and William H. Stiles. A committee was 
appointed to select a candidate. Passing over the 
five candidates, the committee chose Joseph E. 

^ Mercer University was so named in honor of the Reverend 
Jesse Mercer, a famous Baptist preacher, w^ho gave a large part of 
the money needed to establish the institution'. 



284 



History of Georgia 




Joseph Emerson Brown. 



History of Georgia 285 

Brown/ a man almost unknown outside of his own 
section of the state, where he was a Superior Court 
judge. Benjamin H. Hill, a public man of great 
experience and a noted orator, was the candidate of 
the American or Know-Nothing Party. At first 
Hill's election was conceded, but as the campaign 
progressed men awoke to the fact that a man of ex- 
traordinary capacity had been discovered in Judge 
Brown. He was elected, and managed the affairs of 
Georgia during the troublous days of 1 860-1 866, 
serving eight consecutive years, probably a record 
for all time. 

Summary 

The fifty years preceding the Civil War was a 
period of progress in the state. The population in- 
creased very rapidly, especially in the cotton plant- 
ing districts, where negroes outnumbered whites. 

^Joseph Emerson Brown (i 821-1894) was born in South Caro- 
lina, but his family moved to Georgia during the childhood of the 
future governor. In spite of many difficulties, Brown got several 
years' schooling, studied law while teaching and was admitted to 
the bar in 1845. He rose to the judgeship of the Superior Court, 
and was holding that place when he was nominated for governor. 
Governor Brown was regarded as one of the ablest of the war gov- 
ernors of the South. After the war he advocated submission to 
the triumphant North, and, though that was manifestly the wiser 
course, the governor lost his popularity. When the bitter feeling 
aroused by reconstruction days had passed, Georgians came to 
understand the wisdom of Governor Brown's position, and he was 
restored to the confidence of the people, as was evidenced by his 
election to the United States Senate. 



286 History of Georgia 

Georgia produced not only an immense quantity of 
cotton, but much corn, wheat and other foodstuffs. 
She was, however, a heavy buyer of grain from the 
West. In manufacturing, though far behind the in- 
dustrial states of the North, Georgia had many more 
cotton mills and other factories than people ordi- 
narily suppose. Before the era of railroads most of 
the freight transportation was on the rivers. Steam- 
boats came into use during the twenties and after 
that time there was a rapid development of railroads. 
Very little attention was given to public education, 
schools were few in number and poorly equipped, 
with the result that illiteracy was common. Most 
of the important colleges of the state were opened 
in the ante-bellum period, but their development 
was retarded by the lack of a public school system. 

Additional Reading. 

The Farmer Boy of Gaddistown (Sketch of Joseph E. Brown) : 
Harris, Joel C, Stories of Georgia, pp. 259-271, 



CHAPTER XXII 

GEORGIA IN THE WAR BETWEEN THE 

STATES 

The South on the Defensive 

The South was on the defensive almost throughout 
the Civil War. Her advantage in this respect was 
more than offset by the superior resources of the 
North in men and wealth. The North grew greater 
and stronger with every year of the war, but the 
South drained herself of almost the last dollar to 
continue the hopeless struggle. 

General Plan of the War 

In the East the Federal armies were directed 
against Richmond, the capital of die Confederacy. 
Many notable battles were fought on Virginia soil. 
These were usually victories for the Southern armies 
under Lee and Jackson. Among the Georgians who 
fought in Virginia were James L. Longstreet, who 
attained the rank of lieutenant-general and partici- 
pated in the battle of Gettysburg; Brigadier General 
T. R. R. Cobb, killed at Fredericksburg; Lieutenant 
General John B. Gordon, who commanded a wing 
of Lee's army at Appomattox; and Brigadier General 

287 



288 History of Georgia 

Francis S. Bartow, killed at the first battle of Ma- 
nassas. 

In the West the Federal generals pushed down the 
valleys of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers and up 
the valleys of the Tennessee and Cumberland, driv- 
ing a great wedge into the heart of the South and 
dividing her territory into two parts. Federal gun- 
boats cooperated with the armies to take the river 
towns and forts. It was slow work, because the 
resistance of the South was heroic at every step. 
Among the Georgians who achieved high rank in the 
West were Major General Joseph Wheeler and 
Major General W. H. T. Walker. General A. R. 
Lawton was made quartermaster general of the Con- 
federate army in 1863. 

War Reaches Georgia 

It was only at the close of the struggle that inva- 
sion reached this state. Sherman's march to the sea 
constituted practically the only movement in Georgia, 
including in that march the preliminary campaign 
in northwest Georgia. In 1864 the Confederacy was 
tottering to its fall. By that time the crisis of the 
struggle had passed, with the fall of Vicksburg on 
the Mississippi and the battle of Gettysburg. All 
the seaports had fallen and the South was shut off 
from commerce. Her cotton could not be sold, but 
was being piled up by thousands of bales at the ports. 
In Georgia the people went back to home manufac- 



History of Georgia 289 

tured clothes, less cotton and more meat and grain 
v/ere produced. Coffee, tea and other luxuries were 
unattainable and such necessities as salt very hard to 

get. 

Sherman conceived the Georgia expedition with 
the purpose of destroying the military resources still 
left in the state. As he said, ''The utter destruction 
of its roads, houses and people will cripple their mil- 
itary resources." Sherman entered Georgia in May, 
1864, with nearly 100,000 men. He was opposed 
near Dalton by General Joseph E. Johnston with a 
force of 50,000. This force later received a re-en- 
forcement of 14,000 men. By flank movements Gen- 
eral Sherman compelled Johnston to fall back until 
he reached the mountains around Marietta. Here 
Johnston made a stand for twenty-three days of con- 
stant fighting, losing 10,000 men, while Sherman's 
loss amounted to 25,000. Early in July Sherman 
made another move to cut Johnston off from his base 
of supplies, and the Confederate commander with- 
drew towards Atlanta. On July 17th President Da- 
vis made the great mistake of superseding Johnston 
by Hood. General Hood was rash and impetuous. 
He abandoned Johnston's cautious tactics, repeat- 
edly attacked Sherman's immensely superior forces 
and was repulsed with heavy losses. Finally com- 
pelled to evacuate Atlanta^ instead of withdrawing 
southward, he led his army towards Tennessee, hop- 
ing to allure Sherman into following. Sherman, 



290 History of Georgia 

however, detached a part of his army to take c^re of 
Hood and prepared for his long march. 

Burning of Atlanta 

As soon as Atlanta was taken Sherman issued an 
order requiring the inhabitants to leave within five 
days. Hood protested against this order and the 
mayor and council appealed to him to rescind it, stat- 
ing that the bulk of the inhabitants were women and 
children, whose forcible expulsion would entail end- 
less hardship and suffering. To this communication 
Sherman replied:^ "I have read it [the petition] 
carefully, and give full credit to your statements of 
the distress that will be occasioned, and yet shall not 
revoke my orders, because they were not designed 
to meet the humanities of the case." When all prep- 
arations for the southward march had been made 
Sherman set fire to the city. Sherman's conduct on 
this occasion has been condemned by Northern as 
well as Southern writers. It has been pointed out 
that Grant did not find such measures necessary at 
Vicksburg, Rosecrans at Chattanooga, Burnside at 
Fredericksburg, nor Butler at New Orleans. 

The March Begins 

In preparing for the march to the sea Sherman 
left behind all disabled or ineffective men and made 



^ Sherman, W. T., Memoirs, II, p. 125. 



History of Georgia 291 

up a fine army of 60,000 seasoned veterans, of whom 
5,000 were cavalry. The army was to sustain itself 
on the country. Each brigade had an organized party 
of foragers, called ''bummers." These bummers 
were authorized to take all necessary provisions, 
horses and mules, but were ordered not to enter 
dwellings or commit any trespass. In districts where 
the army was not opposed, mills, cotton gins and 
houses were not to be molested; but they were to be 
destroyed where the march was interrupted. Forag- 
ing parties were ordered to refrain from threatening 
or abusive language, and a portion of goods was to 
be left to each family. These orders were very badly 
obeyed, the soldiers apparently being encouraged to 
believe they were at liberty to do as they pleased, but 
credit must be given to Sherman for having issued 
these instructions. 

Atlanta to Milledgeville 

The first objective point in the march was the cap- 
ital, Milledgeville. Sherman divided his army into 
two divisions. The right wing under General O. O. 
Howard was sent along the railroad via Jonesboro 
and McDonough, with orders to make a feint on 
Macon, and stop at Gordon, on the Central of 
Georgia Railroad. The left wing, under General 
H. W. Slocum, went via Decatur and Covington to 
Madison. General Sherman accompanied the left 
wing. The army spread out, visiting the important 



392 



History of Georgia 



o Chattanooga 



Rome 



Dalton 

I 

^ Reseca 

Calhoun 
vsville 






Vcav^e 



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Sherman's March Through Georgia. 



towns in that section of the state. The movement 
from Atlanta began on November 15th. By the 23rd 
Sherman and the left wing reached Milledgeville 



History of Georgia 293 

and the right wing rested at Gordon. Sherman did 
not destroy the capital buildings at Milledgeville. 

Milledgeville to Savannah 

On November 24th the march was resumed. Sher- 
man's army was again spread out, harrying a wide 
stretch of country and passing through Sandersville, 
Tennille, Louisville and Millen. Sherman's cavalry 
under Kilpatrick visited many places through which 
the army did not pass, such as Waynesboro. Only 
the general direction of the march is indicated on the 
map. Many other towns in addition to those shown 
lay on the route of the army. In the lower section of 
the state Sherman was opposed by small bodies of 
infantry under various generals and a very efficient, 
though small, force of cavalry under General Joseph 
Wheeler. There were many exciting engagements 
between Milledgeville and Savannah, the general 
purpose of the Southern forces being to restrict as 
far as possible the area ravaged by the Federal for- 
agers and cavalry. 

The Siege of Savannah 

On December 9th the Federal army reached the 
vicinity of Savannah. The city was defended by 
General Hardee with 10,000 men, and was well pro- 
tected by outworks and forts, by the rice swamps, 
which had been flooded, and on the side of the sea 
there were many batteries. Though firing was be- 



294 History of Georgia ^^ 

gun and kept up for a number of days between the | 
Federals and the defenders of the outposts, the city 
itself was not hurt. After Sherman had succeeded in 
establishing communication with the Federal gun- 
boats on the coast and in the mouths of the rivers, 
Hardee saw that it would be impossible to hold the 
city, and in order to avoid the destruction of the town 
by heavy ordinance and to save his army, he with- 
drew very skillfully across the river into South Caro- 
lina on December 21st. On the following day Sher- 
man entered Savannah and sent this telegram to Lin- 
coln: ''I beg to present you as a Christmas gift the 
city of Savannah, with one hundred and fifty guns 
and plenty of ammunition, also about twenty-five 
thousand bales of cotton." 

Among the commanders who assisted in the de- 
fense of Georgia during this invasion may be men- 
tioned Generals P. J. Phillips, Gustavus W. Smith, 
LaFayette McLaws, Robert Toombs, Howell Cobb, 
Dick Taylor and A. R. Wright. 

Sherman's Conduct in Georgia 

Probably no other campaign in the whole war has 
been so much discussed or has contributed more to- 
ward keeping alive sectional feeling. The march 
was begun in November, after all the crops were 
gathered. Sherman's ''bummers" found the barns 
bursting with grain, fodder and peas, the outhouses 
full of cotton, the yards crowded with hogs, chickens 



History of Georgia 



295 



and turkeys. The soldiers in the Southern armies 
were starving, not because there was no food in the 
South, but because the means of transportation had 
been destroyed. Sherman was, of course, justified 
in foraging on the country, as did Lee in Pennsyl- 
vania, but the Federal general, not content with lib- 




Sherman's Army Destroying Railways in Georgia. 
Muzzey, "American History" (Ginn & Co.). 



erally feeding his troops and simply occupying 
points of importance, made it his boast that he would 
''smash things to the sea." 

The bummers visited plantations, took everything 
they could use, looted dwellings of valuables, silver 
plate and jewelry, killed and left dead in the pens 



396 History of Georgia 

hogs, poultry and sheep by the thousands. Dwell- 
ings were in hundreds of cases destroyed. 

In his memoirs Sherman says that his orders on 
beginning the march ''were as well obeyed as any 
similar orders ever were," and yet in his official re- 
port he states that he utterly destroyed $80,000,000 
worth of property that he could not use. He almost 
totally ruined the Central Railroad from Gordon to 
Savannah; practically destroyed the Macon and 
Western, the Augusta and Waynesboro and the 
Charleston and Savannah. To quote his report:^ 

'We have also consumed the corn and fodder in 
the region of country thirty miles on either side of a 
line from Atlanta to Savannah, as also the sweet 
potatoes, cattle, hogs, sheep and poultry, have car- 
ried away more than ten thousand horses and mules, 
as well as countless numbers of their slaves. I esti- 
mate the damage done to the state of Georgia and its 
military resources at one hundred millions of dol- 
lars, at least twenty millions of which have inured 
to our advantage, and the remainder is simple waste 
and destruction." 

Leaving Georgia, Sherman continued his excur- 
sion through South Carolina and into North Caro- 
lina, when news of Lee's surrender at Appomattox 
was received; and in North Carolina, General Joseph 
E. Johnston, who had been restored to command, 
surrendered to Sherman. 



^ Jones, C. C, Siege of Savannah, pp. 164-5. 



History of Georgia 297 

Georgia's Contribution to Southern Cause 

The struggle of the South had been an heroic one 
against fearful odds. Not only was the North far 
superior in numbers, but immigration continually 
added to the population. In wealth, commerce, 
manufacturing, and general diversification of indus- 
try the North was incomparably the greater. Only 
a fine fighting spirit and skillful generalship enabled 
the South to maintain the contest as long as she did. 
There were in Georgia in i860 about 100,000 white 
men of voting age. Her contribution of soldiers to 
the cause exceeded this number by 20,000. Mere boys 
and old men were sent to the front in the last 
year or two of the War. It is impossible to estimate 
the cost of the War because there enter into such a 
problem losses that cannot be calculated. The slaves 
were liberated, and while this was ultimately seen as 
a blessing, for the time being thousands of indivi- 
duals lost heavily, as their fortunes were invested in 
slave property. Plantation buildings had fallen into 
decay; fields had been poorly cultivated; thousands 
of head of stock had been killed, leaving only the 
feeblest for farm work. Towns, railroad stations and 
private residences had been burned, railroads de- 
stroyed, and everywhere desolation confronted the 
eyes of the returning soldier. 

The troubles of the state were, however, not over, 
for a harrowing period of seven years of political 
turmoil had to be endured after four years of w^ar. 



398 History of Georgia 

Summary 

The Civil War lasted from April, 1861, to April, 
1865, and during practically the entire period the 
South fought on the defensive. The contest was 
hopeless against the apparently inexhaustible re- 
sources of the North. Immigration and the stimu- 
lus given to industry in the North by the war con- 
stantly increased the population and wealth of that 
section; whereas in the South men killed or cap- 
tured could not be replaced. In time all Southern 
ports were closed by the national men-of-war and the 
export of our one source of money, namely, cotton, 
was rendered impossible. The most remarkable as- 
pect of the war is the fact that it lasted so long; and 
this can be attributed only to the splendid spirit of 
the people. As Georgia was one of the most remote 
of the seceding states, it was necessary that the barrier 
afforded by the other states be broken before inva- 
sion reached us. As nearly all able-bodied Geor- 
gians were then out of the State, resistance was futile 
and the Union army led by Sherman had a practi- 
cally unopposed march to the sea, which he reached 
in the winter of 1864. Lee's surrender in the follow- 
ing spring closed the war. 

Additional Reading. 

"From Chattanooga to Atlanta," Evans, L. B., History of 
Georgia, Chapter LIII. "The March to the Sea," Evans, Chap- 
ter LIV, "Georgia in the War," Harris, J. C, Stories of Georgia, 
pp. 272-296. 



CHAPTER XXIII 

RECONSTRUCTION, 1865-1868^ 

Status of the Southern States 

At the close of the war difference of opinion ex- 
isted in the North as to how the Southern states 
should be treated. Had the attempted secession sim- 
ply failed and left the Southern states in the Union 
with nothing to do but resume their former position 
with all its rights and duties? Or were they to be 
regarded as conquered territories? Should penal- 
ties be imposed on the South for her effort to destroy 
the Federal Union? President Lincoln had never 
regarded the Confederate States as out of the Union. 
He consistently refused to recognize their ambassa- 
dors as representing a separate government. His 
view was that certain individuals had aroused rebel- 
lion, and that when the insurrection should have been 
put down, nothing would be necessary except the 
restoration of the old order, with certain changes 
wrought by the War. This view was held at the 
South and by President Johnson, who tried to carry 



^ Woolley, Edwin C, The Reconstruction of Georgia (Colum- 
bia University Press). This is the best account of the political 
reconstruction of Georgia. 



299 



300 History of Georgia 

out Lincoln's idea. Congress at first shared this 
opinion, though it later adopted a different policy. 

The Presidential Reconstruction, 1865 

Even before hostilities ceased the President began 
to put into effect his plan of reconstruction. The con- 
ditions of readmission, according to his programme, 
were three, the repeal of the ordinance of secession, 
the repudiation of the war debt, and the acceptance of 
the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution, 
which abolished slavery. In order that machinery 
might be provided for the performance of these acts, 
it was necessary that government be organized in the 
Southern states. To this end President Johnson ap- 
pointed provisional governors, charged with the duty 
of calling in each state a convention of those who 
had taken the oath of allegiance to the United 
States. In Georgia James Johnson, a native of the 
state, was appointed provisional governor. He sum- 
moned a convention to meet in October, 1865, and 
in the meanwhile Governor Brown and other lead- 
ing men went about the state, advising the people 
to submit to the requirements of the President, as the 
best that could be obtained. A majority of the people 
followed this advice and sent up able men to the con- 
vention. Herschel V. Johnson^ was elected chair- 

^ Herschel V. Johnson was born in Burke County, Georgia, in 
1812. He was graduated from the Universit}^ of Georgia in 1834, 
and after studying law was admitted to the bar, locating in Augusta. 



History of Georgia 



301 




Herschel Vespasian Johnson. 
From an engraving lent by Mr. A. B. Caldivell. 



302 History of Georgia 

man of this convention. The requirements of the 
President were met and arrangements made for 
the election of a Governor and legislature. At the 
election in November Charles J. Jenkins was chosen 
Governor. The legislature met on December 4th, 
1865, and elected Herschel V. Johnson and Alexan- 
der H. Stephens as United States Senators. In all 
the Southern states a similar programme was carried 
out. 

Legislation to Restrain the Excesses of Freedmen 

This peaceful reentrance into the Union was not, 
however, destined to be permanent. The North was 
irritated by the simplicity of the process. The re- 
construction had been eflected by President Johnson 
entirely without the aid of Congress, and Congress 
felt that it should have been consulted. Further- 
more, while the Southern states accepted the Thir- 
teenth Amendment, all of them pass^ed laws intended 
to control the negroes. The conduct of the negroes 
during the war filled every Southern heart with af- 
fection for them. Though the opportunities for idle- 
ness, escape and crime were unlimited in the absence 
of the masters, the overwhelming mass of slaves had 

After having been defeated in a contest for Congress, he was 
appointed to the United States Senate in 1848. He served two 
terms as governor, 1853 to 1857, ^"d i" i860, was the vice-presi- 
dential candidate on the Douglas ticket. Johnson was a Union man 
by conviction, but when the state seceded, he accepted a senator- 
ship in the Confederate Congress. He died in 1880. 



History of Georgia 303 

remained on the estates and made the food that sup- 
plied the armies. But the success of the North and 
emancipation produced a change. The negroes were 
ignorant and stupid, and did not understand their 
new freedom. At first they thought it meant perma- 
ment release from labor. Great numbers of the ex- 
slaves abandoned the country and flocked to the 
towns, where they became an idle, vicious and dan- 
gerous element. Labor w^as disorganized at a time 
when there was never more need for industry and 
steady work. The only remedy seemed to be some 
sort of legislation that, short of forcing the blacks 
back into slavery, would preserve them and the South 
from the evils of the transition from servitude to 
freedom. All the Southern states enacted legislation 
against vagrancy.^ Further legislation secured all 
civil rights to the negro. Marriage between the 
races was prohibited. 

Congress Sets Aside the Presidential Reconstruction 

Such legislation as this in Georgia and throughout 
the South angered the people of the North, who 
thought the laws were passed in a spirit of oppres- 
sion. Hence, when Congress met in December, 1865, 
the Republicans were in sullen mood. They refused 
to seat Southern Representatives and Senators, and 
announced their intention to overthrow the Johnson 

^ See p. 325. 



304 History of Georgia 

governments and reconstruct the South anew and on 
a very different plan. 

The Freedmen's Bureau 

Until Congress could work out its plan of recon- 
struction it put into operation an institution known 
as the Freedmen's Bureau, which was charged with 
the supervision of abandoned and confiscated lands 
in the South and the control of all matters relating 
to the negroes. The purpose was to befriend the 
homeless, helpless and ignorant blacks during the 
perilous days following the war. Provisions, cloth- 
ing and fuel were given them; forty acres of aban- 
doned or confiscated lands were ordered to be leased 
to every black applicant; he was to be protected in 
the possession of the land for three years, and during, 
or at the expiration of, that time he might purchase 
at a fair valuation. It was in this way that negro 
land ownership in the South began. An amendment 
to the bill directed the Bureau to establish free 
schools for the negroes, and the educational activity 
of the Bureau during its existence was very great. 
The control over the operations of the Bureau was 
placed in the hands of petty politicians. They 
soon lost sight of the original philanthropic purpose 
of the institution and went into politics. The Freed- 
men's Bureau became the rallying point for the of- 
fice-seeking ''carpet-bagger" and the idle negro. It 
became a system of government, far-reaching and 



History of Georgia 305 

powerful through the support of the bayonet. In- 
stead of doing all it could to bring together whites 
and blacks, it widened the gap between the races. 
With the end of reconstruction the Freedmen's Bu- 
reau expired by act of Congress in 1872. 

Congress Overthrows the Johnson Governments. 
Fourteenth Amendment 

It took Congress two or three months to decide on 
the plan of reconstruction to be imposed on the 
South. There was a great deal of difference of opin- 
ion in the body, some desiring lenient treatment, oth- 
ers the extreme of severity. The latter element was 
led by Charles Sumner, of Massachusetts, and Thad- 
deus Stevens, of Pennsylvania. Finally .it was de- 
cided to declare the reconstruction as carried out by 
President Johnson illegal, and to require the Southern 
states to adopt another amendment to the Constitu- 
tion before admission to the Union. This amend- 
ment contained several clauses, among them one 
which placed before the South the alternatives of 
granting the suffrage to the negro or of having their 
Congressional representation reduced, and another 
disqualifying for office the leading citizens of the 
South. The clause relative to the suffrage of the 
negro was a compromise between those who desired 
to give the negro the suffrage without any condition 
and those who were totally opposed to making the 
ex-slaves voters. 



306 History of Georgia 

Fourteenth Amendment Rejected 

The prompt rejection of the amendment by every 
Southern state, except Tennessee, as well as by Ohio, 
Michigan, Kansas and Minnesota, converted Con- 
gress to the downright determination to force negro 
suffrage on the South. From that time the radicals 
led by Sumner and Stevens controlled Congress. The 
principle of the reconstruction measures to come was 
simply the turning upside down of Southern society 
and permanently securing the political domination of 
the negroes. This was to be done by the enfranchise- 
ment of the negro and the disfranchisement of the 
leading white men of the South. 

Reconstruction Acts of 1867 

A Reconstruction Act was passed in March, 1867. 
It declared that no government existed in the ten 
Southern states, and to supply it the South was di- 
vided into five military districts, with a Brigadier- 
General and troops in control of each. The condi- 
tion of readmission was the acceptance of the previ- 
ously rejected Fourteenth Amendment, and in addi- 
tion a new state constitution was required to be made 
by each state. Constitutions are made by conventions 
elected for the purpose. Congress ordered that all 
negroes be allowed to take part in this election. They 
were to vote for members and to be eligible to mem- 
bership in the convention. At the same time all the 
leading Southern men, those best qualified to make a 



History of Georgia 307 

constitution, were not allowed to be elected to mem- 
bership in this convention or even to vote for mem- 
bers. This disqualification was brought about by 
requiring every one before voting .to take oath that 
he had not held any office under state or national 
government and then taken part in the war. 

Bullock Elected Governor of Georgia. Fourteenth 
Amendment Accepted 

Under the direction of the military commanders 
the process of registration of voters for the constitu- 
tional conventions went on during the summer of 
1867. In Georgia General Pope was the military 
Governor. He divided the state into forty-four dis- 
tricts of three counties each and three districts of a 
city each. In each district two white registrars were 
chosen and they were ordered to choose a negro for 
the third. The total registration was 95,214 whites, 
93,457 negroes. The delegates elected met in De- 
cember, 1868, in Atlanta. One Foster Blodgett was 
elected temporary chairman. This convention drew 
up a new constitution, enfranchising the blacks. The 
instrument was submitted to the people in April fol- 
lowing for ratification, and at the same time an elec- 
tion for governor, state house officers and congress- 
men was held. Rufus B. Bullock was elected Gov- 
ernor by the votes of the negroes and the carpet- 
bagger whites, but a majority of ''Conservatives" (as 
the Democrats were called) were elected to the 



1)08 History of Georgia 

House of Representatives, while in the Senate the 
''Radicals" and Conservatives were equally repre- 
sented. The Radical body consisted of "Carpet-Bag- 
gers," ''Scalawags" and negroes. A carpet-bagger 
was a Northern man who came South to plunder the 
people and marshal the ignorant negro vote. A scal- 
awag was a Southerner who affiliated with the inter- 
lopers and negroes. The only act remaining to be 
performed in order to complete the second restora- 
tion of the state was the acceptance of the Four- 
teenth Amendment, which was done on July 21, 1868. 
Georgia's congressmen were thereupon seated. The 
Senators would have been received had they not ar- 
rived after the end of the session. 

A programme similar to this was carried out in 
mc«st of the Southern states. In the Southwest pecu- 
liar conditions delayed reconstruction. 

Summary and Additional Reading. 

See end of next chapter. 



CHAPTER XXIV 

RECONSTRUCTION, 1868-1871 

Organization of a Conservative Party 

The enfranchisement of the negro disgusted South- 
erners and destroyed any chance of a quick return of 
friendly feeling between the sections. The first in- 
clination of Georgians was to refrain from taking 
any part whatever in the election of 1868, feeling 
helpless in the presence of an almost equal number 
of black voters, whose ranks were swelled by carpet- 
baggers and scalawags. But calmer councils pre- 
vailed, and instead of allowing the adventurers and 
negroes to sweep into victory unopposed, the Demo- 
cratic Party was reorganized in December, 1867. 
Howell Cobb, Benjamin H. HilP and Robert 



^ Benjamin H. Hill was born In Jasper County, Georgia, Sep- 
tember 14, 1823. After a youth of hard work on the farm, he 
entered the University of Georgia at seventeen, being graduated 
ivith first honors. In college, he made a remarkable reputation as an 
orator. He studied law later and settled in LaGrange. Mr. 
Hill entered public life as a Union Whig, during the great crisis 
of 1850. He was a strenuous opponent of secession, but after the 
withdrawal of the South became a Senator in the Confederate 
Congress. Mr. Hill's fame was achieved principally in connection 
with the Reconstruction measures of Congress. For several years 
his ardent opposition to those measures made him the idol of the 
people. In 1870, when he saw the futility of further opposition, he 



310 



History of Georgia 




Benjamin Harvey Hill. 



History of Georgia '.]\\ 

Toombs were the active spirits in the new party. 
General John B. Gordon consented to run as the can- 
didate of the Conservatives. A very active campaign 
followed. Great numbers of white people decided to 
take the oath and register. The result was that, al- 
though Bullock was elected, as has been related, the 
majority of the members of the new House of Repre- 
sentatives were Conservatives, while in the Senate 
the seats were equally divided between Radicals and 
Conservatives. This was a circumstance entirely un- 
looked for. It is a remarkable tribute to the de- 
termination of Georgians and the capacity of their 
leaders that such a quick political recovery was made. 
Governor Bullock was naturally much put out and 
at once began to scheme to get control of the legisla- 
ture. General Meade, successor to General Pope, 
had not yet been withdrawn from military supervi- 
sion of the state. Governor Bullock wrote him that 
a number of ineligible persons were said to be in the 
houses of the legislature ; that is to say, men who were 
disqualified under the Fourteenth Amendment. 
Meade replied that the charge was serious and di- 
rected that each house create a committee to examine 
into the eligibility of its members. The Senate Com- 
mittee reported none ineligible; the majority of the 

advocated acquiescence in the established facts. This eminently 
wise and patriotic action temporarily cost him his popularity. In 
1873 he was defeated for the United States Senate; but bv 1877 
he had become rehabilitated in the popular esteem and was elevated 
to the Senate. This position he held until his death in 1882. 



312 History of Georgia 

House Committee reported two ineligible; but a 
minority report found none ineligible and the House 
accepted the minority report. Meade considered 
this final and refused to interfere any further. He 
believed that Bullock was simply trying to secure a 
party advantage and he was averse from giving as- 
sistance to such a scheme. Bullock was therefore 
checkmated for the time. 

Expulsion of Negro Members 

Twenty-five members of the House and three Sen- 
ators were negroes. Their presence was obnoxious 
not only to the Conservatives, but to the more moder- 
ate of the Republicans or Radicals. A portion of the 
Republican Party in Georgia were men of the high- 
est stamp in the state, who, like Governor Brown, 
believed that a cheerful compliance with the wishes 
of Congress would in the long run be best for the 
people. In September, 1868, the House declared 
negroes ineligible to hold office and expelled its black 
members. A similar resolution in the Senate vacated 
the seats of the freedmen. 

Governor Bullock, seeing a chance to regain con- 
trol, at once repaired to Washington and presented 
to the Senate a document in which he claimed that 
Georgia had never been finally reconstructed. He 
based this claim on the fact that the members of the 
legislature had not taken the oath required by the 
Reconstruction Act of 1867 ^^^^ therefore, a legal 



History of Georgia :]l'.\ 

legislature did not exist. This, of course, was an 
afterthought. General Meade had already settled 
the point of eligibility, Governor Bullock had 
allowed himself to be inaugurated by this legislature 
which he now claimed to be illegal, the Fourteenth 
Amendment had been passed by the same body, and 
United States Senators elected by it. However, the 
Radicals in Congress had long since passed the point 
of being disconcerted by the legal aspects of such 
matters. The Georgia Senators were refused their 
places and the Representatives were unseated. 



Georgia Again Out of the Union 

Congress did not finally decide what should be 
done with Georgia until the following December 
(1869), when a bill was passed to promote the re- 
construction of Georgia. Military rule was again 
established, General Terry being this time in com- 
mand. He took charge of the legislative difficulty, 
and in January, 1870, had a committee of officers 
purge the House of twenty-four Conservatives and 
reseat the negroes! These proceedings disgusted all 
the moderates of Congress and many of the strongest 
adherents of the reconstruction measures. The Ju- 
diciary Committee of the United States Senate con- 
demned as unlawful the whole proceeding. It was 
clearly shown that personal motives were behind the 
acts of the Governor. 



314 History of Georgia 

Third Reconstruction of Georgia, 1870. Fifteenth 
Amendment 

The condition of readmission imposed by the Act 
of December, 1869, was made the acceptance of a 
Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution, which the 
Conservative legislature had already rejected in 
March, 1869. This amendment was intended to se- 
cure without any conditions whatever the right of 
suffrage to the negroes. It marked an advance in 
Republican thought over the Fourteenth Amend- 
ment, which only placed before the South the alter- 
natives of granting suffrage to the freedmen or of 
having her congressional representation reduced. 
Since the Fourteenth Amendment had become law, 
the extreme Radicals had got control of Congress. 
Georgia's ''purged" legislature accepted this Fif- 
teenth Amendment, and on its passage the military 
was finally withdrawn from the state. Georgia was 
the last of the seceding states to be restored to the 
Union. The Fifteenth Amendment had not been ac- 
cepted without a fight over the entire country. The 
Democratic Party everywhere opposed it, the amend- 
ment failing in California, Delaware, Kentucky, 
Maryland, Oregon and Tennessee. When Georgia 
was alone outside the Union it chanced that one vote 
was necessary for the passage of the amendment, and 
Georgia was therefore forced to accept it. The vote 
of every other state was a voluntary one. 



History of Georgia 315 

The Campaign of 1870 

The campaign for election of members to the legis- 
lature in 1870 was one of the most memorable in the 
history of Georgia. Benjamin H. Hill addressed an 
open letter to the people of Georgia in which he 
advised them to accept in good faith the three amend- 
ments to the Constitution, to take part in the election 
and send good men to make the laws. His influence 
was powerful. The election passed ofif with little 
disturbance, many negroes now voting the Demo- 
cratic ticket. Two-thirds of the new legislators and 
five of the seven Congressmen were of the Conserva- 
tive party. 

Bullock saw that his power was gone, and fearing 
criminal indictment, in October, 1871, fled the state. ^ 
In 1876. he was arrested, brought to Georgia and 
tried on an indictment for embezzlement. Benjamin 
H. Hill, Jr., was the solicitor-general at the time and 
assisted in his prosecution. In his biography of his 
father Mr. Hill states that ''the most searching in- 
vestigation failed to disclose any evidence of his guilt 
and he was promptly acquitted by a Democratic 
jury." Bullock lived in Atlanta for many years after 
his trial and acquittal and became a useful and hon- 
ored citizen." 



^ At a special election in December, 1871, James M. Smith was 
elected governor, and the return of normal political conditions dates 
from his inauguration the following January. 

- The Independent, March lo, 1903, contains a defense of his 
administration by Ex-governor Bullock. 



316 History of Georgia ^^^i 

Character of Reconstruction Government f 

The years during which Georgia was under mili- 
tary control and the governorship of Bullock are the 
most unpleasant in her history. When the vote was 
placed in the hands of the negroes, adventurers from 
other sections flocked to Georgia to organize them. 
The black voters were marshaled and voted like 
sheep. Woodrow Wilson speaks of what followed 
as ^'an extraordinary carnival of public crime under 
the forms of law." There was apparently no limit 
to the cupidity and rascality of the carpet-baggers. 
''Here and there an able and upright man cleansed 
administration, checked corruption, served them (the 
negroes) as a real friend and honest leader." Such 
a man was ex-Governor Brown. But for him and a 
few others conditions in Georgia would have been 
worse. At the time our people did not appreciate 
this service. Naturally blinded by indignation, 
Georgians were inclined to class all Republicans to- 
gether. At a later time Brown regained the respect 
and esteem of the people of Georgia and was made 
United States Senator. 

The reconstruction government of Georgia cost 
the state $2,700,000 in increased bond issues, the pro- 
ceeds of which disappeared. The state became lia- 
ble for $6,923,400 on the endorsement of bonds of 
various railroads. The expense of Bullock's legisla- 
ture amounted to the sum of $979,055, four or five 
times as much as any previous legislature had cost 



History of Georgia 317 

the State. There were 104 clerks, nearly one clerk 
to every two members. The most scandalous indi- 
vidual instance of corruption was the mismanage- 
ment of the Western and Atlantic Railroad, which, 
it will be remembered, was the property of the state. 
That road was placed under the management of Fos- 
ter Blodgett. The auditor of this road admitted that 
he had saved from twenty to thirty thousand dollars 
out of his salary of two or three thousand. Hundreds 
of employees were discharged to make way for friends 
of the administration; positions of trust and impor- 
tance requiring special knowledge were filled by men 
utterly ignorant of the work they were supposed to 
perform; the receipts of the road, instead of being 
turned over to the state or used in the upkeep of the 
property, were stolen. When reconstruction finallv 
ended the road was almost ruined. 

The Failure of Reconstruction 

The enfranchisement of the negro was an unwise 
and unstatesmanlike measure. It was forced on the 
South by Congress from a mixture of motives. Ideal- 
ists, believing in the essential equality of all men; 
politicians, Intent on securing party advantage; 
statesmen, who believed that in no other way could 
the negro be enabled to protect himself, united in 
the support of enfranchising the freedmen. The 
North was confident of the success of the experiment. 
General Pope In 1867 wrote In a report that In five 



318 History of Georgia 

years he believed the intelligent element of Georgia 
would be the blacks. A recent Northern historian 
says of the reconstruction policy, ''Seven unwhole- 
some years were required to demonstrate that not 
even the government which had quelled the greatest 
rebellion in history could maintain the freedmen in 
both security and comfort on the necks of their for- 
mer masters. The demonstration was slow, but it 
was effective and permanent." The purposes which 
inspired the reconstruction measures utterly failed 
of realization. Not only did the Southern people in 
fact take control, sometimes by force and fraud, of 
all the state governments on the withdrawal of the 
troops, but the acts by which Congress sought to 
enforce the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments 
have been declared unconstitutional by the Supreme 
Court; and finally, nearly all the Southern states 
have in law deprived the negro of the ballot, by the 
imposition of educational and other qualifications. 

Summary 

Georgia passed through three distinct processes of 
reconstruction. The first of these is known as the 
Presidential reconstruction, in which President 
Johnson attempted to carry out the plans outlined 
by Lincoln. The Southern states were required to 
repeal the ordinances of secession, to repudiate the 
war debt, and to accept the Thirteenth Amendment, 
which abolished slavery. This very lenient treat- 



History of Georgia \]\\) 

ment of the South was not, however, allowed to pass 
unchallenged. The second reconstruction was due 
to resentment on the part of Congress at the Presi- 
dent's presuming to permit the South to return to the 
Union without consulting the law-making body as 
to the terms to be imposed ; and, in the second place, 
to Northern opposition to the laws passed by the 
South to control the negroes. Congress, therefore, 
overthrew the President's arrangement, divided the 
South into military districts, and made the condition 
of readmission the acceptance of a Fourteenth 
Amendment to the Constitution. This amendment 
gave the negroes a conditional right to the exercise 
of the suffrage and disqualified leading Southerners 
from voting or officeholding. Georgia complied 
with the wishes of Congress, and was admitted a sec- 
ond time in 1868. The third reconstruction was the 
result of the act of the Conservative majority of the 
state legislature in expelling negro members. The 
troops were sent back, and Georgia was finally re- 
stored to the Union in 1870, when she adopted the 
Fifteenth Amendment, giving the vote to the negroes. 
During the two congressional periods of the re- 
construction, Georgia became the prey of interloping 
white men from the North, who organized the negro 
vote and had themselves elected to office. It should 
be said, however, that Georgia suffered far less from 
reconstruction than the majority of the Southern 
states. We had the good fortune to have an element 



320 History of Georgia 

of cool-headed native men who saw that the wisest 
course to pursue was not violent resistance to Con- 
gress, but acquiescence in the inevitable. These men 
diverted from Georgia many of the evils which came 
to the sister states of the South. 

Additional Reading. 

The Reconstruction Period: Harris, J. C, Stories of Georgia, 
pp. 297-306. Reconstruction in Georgia: Smith, C. H., History of 
Georgia, Chaps. XXVII, XXVIII, XXIX. Evans, L. B., 
History of Georgia, Chaps. LV, LVI, LVII. 



CHAPTER XXV 

THE SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC 
REVOLUTION 

Southern Conditions in 1865 

While the North grew richer and greater with 
each year of the war, the close of the struggle found 
the South prostrate. Industry had practically come 
to a standstill. Plantation work had been continued 
as well as it could be in the absence of the masters. 
The only wealth to be found immediately convertible 
into money was cotton, many thousands of bales of 
which were collected at various points in the interior 
and at the ports, kept off the market by the blockade. 
The benefit of even this means of relief was, how- 
ever, denied the South, for as soon as peace was de- 
clared this cotton became the object of diligent 
search on the part of Treasury officials. A military 
order of 1865 required the surrender to the United 
States government of all cotton which had been sold 
to the Confederate government. Under cover of this 
order all cotton that could be found was seized and 
sold and the proceeds either stolen by the government 
agents or transmitted to the United States Treasury. 

321 



322 History of Georgia 

Cotton Tax 

The recovery of the South was also hampered by 
the imposition of a direct tax of three cents a pound 
on cotton whereby millions were unconstitutionally 
taken from the Southern people. 

Passing of the Old Social Order 

One of the most striking of the permanent results 
of the Civil War was the destruction of the old social 
order. Leadership in politics, society and business 
had been monopolized by the slaveholders and their 
connections, the lawyers and the factors of the cities. 
The fortunes of this class of society were freely given 
to the Confederacy; their money went into the pur- 
chase of Confederate bonds, which became valueless; 
their main form of wealth, slaves, was destroyed; 
land, in the absence of capital, declined in value. 
Hence the planter lost his position of dominance. 

Rise of the Middle Class 

While there had never been anything like a caste 
system in the South, it has been shown that society 
was stratified by the institution of slavery. In the 
readjustment after 1865 men of the middle class im- 
proved their condition. In many cases the former 
leaders were so discouraged by their reverses that 
they had no spirit left to face life anew. Many nota- 
ble instances to the contrary occurred, especially in 
the state of Georgia. But the middle class of people, 



History of Georgia 323 

who had never owned slaves nor great wealth, did not 
suffer so greatly as did the slaveholders, and now 
under the new conditions it was easier for men of 
energy among them to rise. 

Free Schools 

Another far-reaching change wrought by the war 
was the establishment of free schools, supported by 
the state. In Georgia this reform was brought about 
by the carpet-bag government. No more powerful 
agency could have been created for the uplift of the 
middle class whites and the negroes. In some of the 
Southern states this matter of free schools caused 
great trouble. In South Carolina, Louisiana, Flor- 
ida and Mississippi it was sought to inaugurate 
mixed schools for whites and blacks, and in Louisi- 
ana and South Carolina such schools were actually 
established by law. The University of South Caro- 
lina was required to admit negroes. Northern school 
teachers flocked to the South, sent by missionary so- 
cieties. These good people thought that the only 
difference between the Southern gentleman and the 
freedman was the latter's want of acouaintance with 
Latin and Greek literature, and they diligently, pray- 
erfully and earnestly set to work to supply their 
proteges with culture out of the whole cloth. The 
negroes flocked to school, because the belief was uni- 
versal among them that education meant release from 
toil. As was inevitable, the sort of education given 



;324 History of Georgia 

the negroes at that time failed, and a great change 
has come in the thought of the nation on that sub- 
ject. Except for a few negro classical colleges, which 
are doing a good work in training leaders for the 
race, the older classical schools have disappeared 
and in their place industrial schools have risen. In 
addition, every Southern state appropriates annually 
many thousands 'of dollars in support of public 
schools for the negroes. In Georgia the law requires 
the establishment of a negro school in each school 
district, and though these schools are of a very low 
grade, insufficiently housed and conducted by incom- 
petent teachers, they accomplish some good work. 

Fall of the Plantation System 

The plantation was a highly organized institution 
for the control of unintelligent slave labor. Its suc- 
cess lay in the master's authority to compel his ser- 
vants to work. With emancipation the planters of 
course lost this right of control and the relation be- 
tween planter and laborer became a matter of con- 
tract. While the planter under the new order es- 
caped many burdens inherent in the slavery system, 
he suddenly found himself without any labor supply 
whatever on which he could depend. The negroes' 
first idea of freedom was permanent release from 
labor. They were encouraged by the agents of the 
Freedmen's Bureau and the carpet-baggers to be- 
lieve that their masters' plantations would soon be 



Uhtoiy of Georgia WZo 

divided among them, and that the government would 
supply stock and tools. Filled with such notions, the 
blacks flocked to the towns, hung about the Freed- 
men's Bureau and utterly refused to work. The dis- 
organization of labor on the seaboard permanently 
hurt the rice industry, as is shown by the fact that 
in i860 Georgia produced 52,507,652 pounds of rice, 
while in 1900 the production was only 11,174,562 
pounds. Two agencies were called into play to assist 
in the restoration of order and in the discomfiture 
of the carpet-baggers. They were the law and the 
Ku Klux Klan. 



Laws to Control the Freedmen 

So serious became the problem of vagrancy and 
the insolence of the negroes that Georgia, along with 
the other Southern states, adopted certain restrictive 
laws, which the times seemed to demand. An ''Ap- 
prentice Law" required negro minors whose parents 
were dead or unable to support them to be bound 
out as apprentices; their masters were required to 
teach them industry and honesty; to instruct them In 
reading and writing, and to furnish the necessaries 
of life. To reach older negroes, a ''Vagrant Law" 
was passed, providing a heavy penalty for vagrancy. 
A vagrant might be fined or Imprisoned at the dis- 
cretion of the courts, forced to work on public roads 
for a year, or be bound out for a year. 



3/3 G 



History of Georgia 



Ku Klux Klan 

The Ku Klux Klan was begun in a Tennessee town 
in May, 1866, by a group of young men lately re- 
turned from the war/ The idea originated in fun, 




Photograph Showing Costumes Actually Used By a Ku Klux Band. 

Fleming, "Documc7itary History of Recojistruction" (Artliiir H. Clarke 
Company). 

the product of a desire to relieve the tedium of life 
in an out-of-the-way Southern town. The society was 
a secret organization. When the members went out 



^ Brown, W. Cj., Lower South in American History, Chapter 
IV. History of the Ku Klux Klan. 



History of Georgia 32? 

at night they wore a white mask, a tall cardboard hat 
and had their horses' feet muffled. Soon the freed 
negroes began to make trouble, and, as the South 
was in the hands of Federal troops, no open resistance 
to the insolence of negroes nor correction of their 
idleness could be resorted to with safety. The Ku 
Klux Society was admirably suited to impose on the 
ignorance and superstition of the negroes, and soon 
from the original Klan hundreds of offshoots had 
sprung. The movement was spontaneous, widespread 
and the result instantaneous. It is hard to see how 
the excesses of the freedmen and of their far more 
culpable white leaders could have been restrained 
but for this great secret organization. The Ku Klux 
Klan numbered in its membership thousands of the 
best men in the South. Unfortunately, at a later time, 
under the mask of the order, unscrupulous men began 
to avenge personal grudges, and the Klan degener- 
ated into an enemy of law rather than an upholder 
of order. 



New System of Farming 

No greater mistake could be made, however, than 
to suppose that all colored men became idle and 
worthless. On many plantations the masters called 
their former slaves about them, explained the situ- 
ation, advised them to go quietly to work and offered 
to give employment to all who would stay. Thou- 



328 History of Georgia 

sands followed such advice, and before a great while 
many of those who abandoned the farms awoke to 
the fact that all men must work. 

There are no statistics which trace the changes in 
the systems of farming that occurred between 1865 
and 1880. The main lines of the movement, how- 
ever, are known. Before the war there had been 
practiced a species of renting known as the "third- 
and-fourth" system. Poor white people owning no 
land sometimes rented the less desirable, outlying 
portions of plantations, the landlord furnishing land 
and house only, the renter paying for the use of the 
soil one-fourth of the cotton produced and one-third 
of the corn. It was natural that this system should 
have been extended after the war to the negroes, with 
the variation that it was necessary for the landlord 
to ^^supply" the negro renter or secure the merchant 
who advanced him the necessaries. This system 
gradually died out, because it was too hazardous for 
the landlord. He exercised practically no supervi- 
sion and his chances of realizing anything were 
small. An amusing incident is told of a landlord 
who, on demanding his third of the corn, was told by 
the negro renter that there wasn't any third, as he 
had made only two wagon loads of corn. Other 
planters tried working the negroes as wage hands, 
but this plan also proved unsatisfactory. The ma- 
jority of planters had great difficulty in raising cash 
for wages, and the negro, after receiving his week's 



History of Georgia 329 

or month's pay, was likely to exercise his privilege of 
leaving his job without notice. 

Cropping or Share Tenancy 

While lacking ready money for the payment of 
wages, the landlords could get credit. The failure of 
the third-and-fourth system and of the wages plan 
suggested a new system which soon became wide- 
spread. It is known as "cropping." Under this sys- 
tem the landlord furnishes land, house, stock, tools 
and feeds the cropper, the latter supplying only the 
labor. The crop is divided equally between land- 
lord and tenant, the tenant paying from his share 
for the supplies advanced him while making the 
crop. Under this plan the landlord and tenant be- 
come partners in a business enterprise and self-inter- 
est induces the negro to work faithfully. This was 
an eminently successful system so long as the planters 
lived on their farms and closely supervised the oper- 
ations of the tenant. But it was a hard life. The 
changed spirit of the negro made it a difficult matter 
to keep him at work. This system still prevails in 
those counties of Georgia where the whites are 
numerically in the ascendency and live on their 
farms. 

Renting Begins 

So great an effort was involved in watching the 
croppers that soon another system was evolved, 



330 History of Georgia 

known as the ''standing rent" system. A variety of 
considerations favored the change. The negro's 
aversion from supervision grew stronger every year; 
he desired to direct his own labor and to be absolutely 
independent of the white man. By renting he es- 
caped this supervision, for the landlord furnished 
him only land and house and left him to his own 
resources. The negro supplied himself and in return 
for the use of the land paid a fixed rental, commonly 
one thousand pounds of lint cotton per horse farm. 
The landowner was inclined to favor this plan, be- 
cause it allowed him to escape from the plantation, 
which now had few of the ante-bellum charms, and 
remove to town. The transition was facilitated by the 
passage of a law allowing merchants to take a lien on 
the growing crop of the tenant to secure the advances 
of food and other supplies. 

Results of the Renting System 

Momentous consequences followed the introduc- 
tion of the renting system. The large ante-bellum 
plantations ceased to be units; the old concentrated 
quarters of the negroes disappeared, and the planta- 
tion was divided into many small farms, each with 
its house and family. The landlords removed to town. 
Thus the rural districts of the great cotton belts of 
Georgia were largely abandoned to negroes; the spa- 
cious, elegant old homes went into the hands of the 
freedmen, the stately beauty of Southern agriculture 



History of Georgia 331 

was gone. Theoretically, the renting system marks 
an upward step in the economic evolution of the ne- 
gro, since he is no longer simply a day laborer under 
the direction of a white man, but is a manager. In 
reality, however, the negro is not of sufficient intelli- 
gence to benefit from this arrangement — with many 
individual exceptions. The advance of renting 
marks a decline rather than an advance in agricul- 
tural conditions; the negro loses the advantage of 
capable direction; the land deteriorates in value; 
improvements cease, and production declines. The 
census of 1910 shows that there is now a strong ten- 
dency on the part of Georgia farmers to substitute 
the cropping for the renting system. This is a very 
fortunate movement, meaning greater attention to 
farming and a return to the necessary supervision of 
farm labor. 

Negro Land Ownership 

Coincident with these changes, another of great 
importance is to be noted — the growth of negro land- 
ownership. Land values fell enormously after 1865. 
Many thousands of acres were entirely abandoned. 
Through the agency of the Freedmen's Bureau many 
negroes were put on the soil as lessees and the leases 
sometimes ripened into ownership through the thrift 
of the blacks. Possibly a larger number came into the 
possession of land through the kindness of former 
owners in selling them farms on long time payments. 



3'S2 History of Georgia 

By 1874, when the state of Georgia for the first time 
published the number of acres owned by negroes, 
they were in possession of 338,769 acres. In 1900 the 
figures had risen to 1,075,073; in 1910 to 1,607,970 
acres. While this is a small proportion of the en- 
tire acreage of the state, it indicates progress. It is 
unfortunately true, however, that many of the farms 
nominally owned by negroes are mortgaged to white 
men, either for purchase money or for supplies ad- 
vanced. 

Counties Outside of the Black Belt 

What has been said as to farming conditions ap- 
plies largely to the black belt of Georgia. In the 
counties in which the whites predominate numeri- 
cally, that is to say, where the ante-bellum slavery 
system was not widespread, we find the white people 
still living on their farms and better agricultural 
conditions prevailing. 

Immigration 

A healthy agricultural life cannot exist where the 
best of the farming land is owned by absentee land- 
lords, who entrust their property to incompetent ten- 
ants. This condition, heretofore so widespread, is 
now, in the beginning of the twentieth century, being 
ameliorated. The mountain people, who for so 
many generations have lived isolated lives in their 
remote country, are removing to the piedmont and the 



History of Georgia 333 

wircgrass regions of Georgia. Furthermore, the 
progressive element of Georgians is encouraging im- 
migration from the western states. South Georgia 
is rapidly filling with these highly desirable people. 
The increasing of the proportion of whites to blacks 
is the great need, and the present movements are 
prophetic of better days. 

Agricultural Education: Diversification of Farming 

One of the heritages from ante-bellum times was 
a too exclusive attention to the production of cotton. 
Georgians are now fully awake to the necessity of 
diversified farming. The most powerful agency in 




Group of Farmers Attending Winter Course at the State College 

OF Agriculture. 

Photograph furnished by Prof. R. J. If. DeLoach. 



334 History of Georgia 

Spreading the doctrine is the College of Agriculture 
lately established by the state. Every farmer in 
Georgia is considered a student in this institution and 
every eflfort is being made to reach him with the 
message of new methods. Development of diversifi- 
cation, the growth of the cattle industry, of dairying, 
and market gardening are now widespread. 

Summary 

The Civil War produced far-reaching changes m 
the South. The people who had most to lose were 
the heaviest sufferers. The abolition of slavery, while 
not a permanent social loss, since the labor of the 
negroes remained available, nevertheless meant ruin 
to thousands of planters. Furthermore, the free 
labor was for a time unmanageable. The result was 
that plantations were in large measure broken up 
and a system of tenancy took possession of the black 
belt. The dominant position of the planter was lost 
and at the same time public education and a larger 
opportunity tended to favor the rise of the middle 
class people. So that, looked at from this point of 
view, the War had a tendency to equalize social con- 
ditions. Since the farmers no longer had to invest 
in slaves, much capital in time became available for 
manufacturing and commerce, as we shall see in 
the next chapter. Cities and towns are, therefore, 
of much more importance than in ante-bellum times. 

The most striking change made by the War was. 



History of Georgia 335 

of course, in the condition of the negroes. From 
being slaves they have advanced in fifty years to the 
nominal possession of a million and a half acres of 
land; many thousands of them have received com- 
mon school and technical training and are filling 
useful places in our industrial life. 

Additional Reading. 

New Systems of Farming ; Negro Landownership ; the Credit 
System: Banks, E. M., Econojuics of Land Tenure in Georgia, 
Chaps. II, III, IV, V. 

Conditions in Georgia after the War; Fall of the Plantation 
System; Brooks, R. P, The Agrarian Revolution in Georgia, 
Chaps, I and III. 



CHAPTER XXVI 

RECOVERY AND DEVELOPMENT SINCE 1870 

Growth of Population 

During the forty years since the return of normal 
conditions in Georgia, there has been a steady growth 
of population. The census of 1910 credited the state 
with a population of more than two and a half mil- 
lions (2,609,121), an increase of 120 per cent since 
1870. The white people exceeded the negroes in 
number in 1870 and have slightly increased their lead 
since that time. In 1910 negroes were 45.1 per cent 
of the total population; in 1870 they were 46.3 per 
cent. 

Georgia an Agricultural State 

Only one-fifth of the people of Georgia live in 
cities or towns of more than 2,500 population. In 
other words, despite the great advancement in manu- 
facturing, the overwhelming majority of Georgians 
live on the farm or in villages and small towns. 

Growth of Cities 

Though the bulk of our population lives in the 
rural districts, there has been a steady movement 
from the country to the cities since the Civil War. 



History of Georgia 337 

The increase in the population of the cities has been 
especially marked since 1900: while the rural regions 
increased 12.5 per cent, the cities increased 43.2, or 
three and a half times as fast. The cities which 
have grown with marked rapidity are Atlanta, 
Macon, Rome, Athens, Waycross, and Albany. 



The Sections of Georgia 

In some parts of the state population is growing 
much faster than in others. The most notable de- 
velopment of late years has been in south central 
Georgia, where many of the counties increased in 
population more than fifty per cent in the past decade. 
This growth has resulted in the cutting up of large 
counties and making new county seats of thriving 
towns. Since the census of 1900 was taken. Crisp, 
Ben Hill, Tift, Turner, Jeff Davis, Toombs, Jenkins, 
Bleckley and Wheeler Counties have appeared on the 
map, all in South Georgia. Only one new county 
has been created outside this section, namely, 
Stephens County in northeast Georgia. In the rapid- 
ly growing south central and southeastern section 
whites far outnumber the colored people. 

Another section that has been growing rapidly, 
though not at so striking a pace as South Georgia, 
is the belt of counties just north of the Black Belt. 

Many of the older counties of the seaboard and 
of Middle Georgia are in a stationary condition, six- 



338 



History of Georgia 



DECREASE 

INCREASE 

Less than 5 per cent 

5 to 15 per cent 

15 to 25 per cent 



i ii iiiii 

IMIMIIII 
1 1 1 ' 1 1 1 "I 



25 to 50 per cent P 
50 per cent and over 




Population Movements in Georgia, 1900-1910. 



teen counties having actually lost population during 
the last ten years. This is due to the departure of 
many people to cities and to the richer and fresher 
lands of South Georgia. 



History of Georgia 339 

Enormous Increase of Wealth 

The total wealth returned for taxation in Georgia 
was much less in 1870 than in i860, on account of 
the losses incurred in the War. The pj-ogress since 
1870 has been striking. The total property returned 
for taxation has grown from $227,000,000 in 1870 
to $813,338,438 in 1910. When it is remembered 
that these statistics represent only the values returned 
for taxation, and that property owners, especially 
owners of farm lands, return their property at a rate 
far lower than the actual value, it will be apparent 
that the true value of Georgia property is far higher 
than appears from the books of the Comptroller- 
General. 

Farms and Farm Products 

The value of all farm property has increased more 
than 400 per cent since 1870, while the increase in 
value of implements and machinery has been even 
more rapid. Of improved acreage in 1870 there 
were less than 7,000,000 acres; in 1910 there 
were more than 12,000,000. Even now, however, 
less than three-fourths of the total area of Georgia 
is in farms and only about one-half of the land in 
farms is improved. The production of cotton has 
grown from 473,934 bales in 1870 to 1,992,408 in 
1910. The production of corn has doubled, sweet 
potatoes have increased three-fold, and forage crops 
still more rapidly. Georgia grows much less wheat 



340 



History of Georgia 



than formerly, but in every other respect there has 
been gratifying development. In 1910 Georgia 
ranked fourth among the states in the total value of 
agricultural output, only Texas, Illinois and Iowa 
surpassing her. This rapid development is due to the 
application of science to agriculture and to a great 




"The Agricultural Speclal'' Sent Out By the State College of 

Agriculture. 

Photograph furnished by Prof. R. ./. H. Dr Loach. 



awakening of interest in better agricultural methods. 
Educational trains, boys' corn clubs, girls' canning 
clubs, the extension work of the State College of 
Agriculture and the experimental and instructional 
work on the college farms and in the laboratories; 
activity of the State departments of agriculture and 



History of Georgia 



3-il 



entomology have all helped the cause of progress. 
The fact should be emphasized, however, that w^e do 
not produce enough food crops. In 1910 Georgia 
imported $58,930,000 worth of corn, though our acre- 
age in corn exceeded that of any other South Atlantic 
state. We also bought $39,336,000 of oats, $23,680,- 
000 worth of hay; meats and poultry to the value of 





Experimental Plots, State College of Agriculture. 
Photograph furnished by Prof. R. J. H. DeLoach. 

$38,427,000, and $10,000,000 worth of stock. Added 
together, these figures are found to exceed by about 
$30,000,000 the value of the cotton crop of 19 10, esti- 
mated at $150,000,000. All of these food crops and 
the stock could have been easily raised in Georgia 
without curtailing in any way the production of 
cotton. 



342 



History of Georgia 



Manufacturing 

No modern development in Georgia has been so 
interesting as that of manufacturing. The value of 
our manufactured articles in 1870 was $31,196,115. 
In 19 10 the figures had grown to $202,863,000. 
Atlanta alone produced more manufactured goods in 




A Georgia Cotton Mill. 



1910 than did the entire state in 1870. While the 
manufacturing industries of Georgia are quite varied, 
cotton milling is by far the most important, contribut- 
ing nearly one-fourth of the total value of manu- 
factured goods. Other leading industries are the 
manufacture of fertilizers, lumber and cotton seed 
oil. 



History of Georgia 343 

THE PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM 
Beginnings of the System 

While the material recovery of Georgia has been 
such as to attract the notice of the nation, other inter- 
ests have not been neglected. Fundamental changes 
have come about in the school situation. The Legis- 
lature in 1870 and 1872 enacted laws to carry into 
efifect the mandate of the Constitution of 1868 look- 
ing to the establishment of schools open to the youth 
of the state without charge. The organization of the 
public school system was the work of Gustavus J. 
Orr. He was a South Carolinian, but removed to 
Georgia and became a student at the University of 
Georgia. His education was, however, completed at 
Emory College, and he became a teacher in that 
institution. Orr was an able educator and for fifteen 
years was at the head of the school system of the 
state. The system was begun under General J. R. 
Lewis, but unfortunately the funds set apart for the 
schools were diverted to other purposes, and the close 
of the first year found the state $300,000 in debt to 
the teachers. Orr then came in, reorganized the sys- 
tem, suspended operations for a year in order that 
financial support might be found before additional 
obligations had accumulated, and reopened the 
schools in 1873. 

Forty Years of Development 

Since that time the progress of education in 
Georgia has been steady. In the first year of free 



34-i History of Georgia 

schools, there were enrolled 42,914 white and 6,664 
colored children. This enrollment represented about 
thirteen per cent of the school population. The ap- 
propriation for 1 871 was $174,107. The progress 
of forty years is seen when these figures are compared 
with the following statistics taken from the report 
of the State Superintendent of Schools for 191 1. The 
total enrollment was 565,071, or 77 per cent of the 
school population.^ Of those enrolled 342,129 were 
white and 222,942 colored children. Of the white 
children of school age, 88.5 per cent were attending 
school, of the colored, 63.8 per cent. These figures 
are unfortunately somewhat inaccurate, in that it is 
necessary to use the school census of five years ago. 
Of course, there has been the normal increase since 
that time. The appropriation for common schools 
for 191 1 was $2,500,000. In 1871 the schools had 
practically no property; in 191 1 the total value of 
public school property was $11,163,194.43. The 
number of schools was 8,066, manned by 13,024 
teachers. 

Local Taxation for Schools 

A constitutional amendment of 1904 empowers 
counties and school districts within counties to sup- 



^ The law of Georgia requires that a Census of the school popu- 
lation be taken every five years. The last census was taken in 
1908, at which time the school population w^as 735)471- The 
school population includes all persons between the ages of 6 and 
i8. 



History of Georgia 



?>\:) 



plement by local taxation the state appropriation for 
schools. This provision has proved a powerful aid in 
the betterment of school conditions. Twenty-eight 
counties have (up to March, 1913) adopted the 
county-wide local tax, while 629 districts levy the 
extra assessment. In 191 1, $1,566,654.70 was the 




The Three Small Schools at the Top Were Recently Consolidated 
AND the Building at the Bottom Erected in Their Place. 



amount raised by local taxation. The total amount 
available for common schools in 191 1 was $5,282,- 
651.68. The sums appropriated for higher and sec- 
ondary education raise this total to $6,183,768.37. 
In other words, the people of Georgia in 1911 used 
for educational purposes, through state and local 
taxation, a sum greater than the total amount of 



346 History of Georgia 

taxes received by the Comptroller-General for all 
purposes in that year.^ 

Declining Percentage of Illiteracy 

The effect of this educational activity can be 
pointed to with pride. In 1870 27.4 per cent of our 
white people and 92.1 per cent of our colored popula- 
tion v^ere classed as illiterates. In 1910 the white 
illiteracy had fallen to 7 per cent and the colored to 
36 per cent. 

When we recall the fact that only forty years 
ago there were no public schools and that the 
state did practically nothing for education, this prog- 
gress seems little short of miraculous. The advance- 
ment is all the more impressive in view of the 
chaotic political and economic conditions immedi- 
ately following the Civil War. At the present time 
while Georgia does not appear in a favorable light 
when compared with the most progressive of the 
Northern states, our progress in education has been 
far more remarkable, because the conditions have 
been adverse. One of the most important advantages 
the North has is in the matter of federal pensions. 
Whereas every Northern state receives millions each 
year from the national government, part of which 
is paid by the South in indirect taxes, the states of 
the South not only get nothing, but themselves ex- 

^ The total receipts of the Comptroller-General in 191 1 were 
$5>558,446.36. 



History of Georgia 347 

pend millions to support ex-Confederate soldiers. 
The pension fund in Georgia in 191 1 amounted to 
$1,199,149. 

A Professional State Board of Education 

Much has been done during the past two or three 
years in the direction of better systematizing our 
schools. Among the changes none is of more im- 
portance than the reorganization of the State Board 
of Education. The White Bill of 191 2 put the 
control of educational affairs in the hands of a new 
board, consisting principally of experts in education. 
The old board consisted of politicians who were only 
indirectly interested in educational matters. The 
State Superintendent of Education and the Governor 
are ex officio members of the new board. ^ The state 
has been fortunate in having had as State Superin- 
tendents^ a succession of men of unusual attainments. 



^The present appointed members of the Board of Education 
are Professor T. J. Woofter, Dean of the School of Education 
In the University of Georgia; Professor G. R. Glenn, former 
State Superintendent of Education, and now President of the 
North Georgia Agricultural College; W. T. Steed, Butler; and 
Professor A. H. Moon, Baxley, Ga. 

2 Among the educators who have filled this Important position 
are J. R. Lewis (1870-1872); G. J. Orr (1872-1888); J. S. 
Hook (1888-1891) ; S. D. Bradwell (1891-1895) ; G. R. Glenn 
(1895-1903) ; W. B. Merritt f TQ03-1907) ; J- M. Pound (1907- 
1910) ; and M. L. Brlttaln (1910-....). In 191 1, the title 
of the office was changed f^om State School Commissioner to 
State Superintendent of Schools. 



3J:8 History of Georgia 

The great progress of recent years is due more large- 
ly to their efforts than to any other cause. 

Amendments of igio and 1912 

Constitutional amendments submitted to the people 
and adopted in 1910 and 191 2 remedied defects in 
our fundamental law on the subject of education. 
The 19 10 amendment repealed the constitutional 
provision that prevented counties from levying local 
taxation for any but elementary schools, so that it is 
now legal for counties and school districts to impose 
local taxation for high school purposes. The 191 2 
amendment made the high school a part of the pub- 
lic school system of the state. This change, however, 
was rendered less effective by the action of the legis- 
lature in refusing to submit to the people a proposed 
amendment to authorize the use of state taxes for the 
support of high schools. 

Failure of the Compulsory Education Bill 

In spite of the great progress of the state in educa- 
tion, Georgia still lags behind many of her sister 
states in this respect. The census of 1900 showed 
that only eight states have higher percentages of 
white illiteracy than Georgia has. Those states hav- 
ing a higher percentage of illiteracy than Georgia 
are all Southern states (except New Mexico). For 
a number of years the feeling has been growing that 
the only way to reach the twenty-three per cent of 



History of Gcor^id 349 

our school population still out of school is by com- 
pulsory education. A bill to this end was intro- 
duced in the Legislature of 1913, but failed of pas- 
sage. Its introduction, however, indicates the trend 
of thought on that subject, and it cannot be long 
before compulsory education will be the law in 
Georgia. 

THE UNIVERSITY SYSTEM 
Expansion Since the War 

At the outbreak of the Civil War the University 
of Georgia was a small classical college with a 
faculty of nine members and a total enrollment of 
one hundred and nineteen students. The exercises 
were suspended during the War. In 1866, no money 
being available for the institution, and the trustees 
being unable on that account to assume responsibility 
for the payment of salaries, several of the professors 
reopened the institution as a private venture. Tuition 
was fixed at one hundred dollars. Seventy-eight stu- 
dents were enrolled in 1865- 1866. The state govern- 
ment came to the rescue in the summer of t866 and 
the board again took over the payment of salaries. 

By Act of Congress in 1862, each state in the Union 
was granted a large donation of public lands for the 
establishment of a college to be devoted to science, 
especially in its application to agriculture. The 
funds arising from the sale of Georgia's share of the 
land were turned over to the trustees of the Univer- 



350 



History of Georgia 



sity in 1872, and the Georgia State College of Agri- 
culture and the Mechanic Arts was established at 
Athens as a part of the University. From that time 
the usefulness of the University has been increased 




University of Georgia, Chapel. 
Photograph furnished by Dr. J. P. Campbell. 

by the addition of other schools. Already in 1867 
the Lumpkin Law School in Athens had become 
the law department of the University; in 1903 a 
School of Pharmacy was added; in 1906 a School of 



History of Georgia 



351 



Forestry was created; and during the same year a 
State College of Agriculture^ was established in addi- 
tion to the College of Agriculture and the Mechanic 
Arts, w^hich had become practically the scientific 




Academic Hall, University of Georgia. 

department of the University. The most recent addi- 
tions to the University are the School of Education, 
in 1908, and the School of Commerce, in 1912. 

^Correlated with the State College of Agriculture are the 
Agricultural High Schools, of which there is one in each Con- 
gressional District. These schools were established during the 
administration of Governor Joseph M. Terrell. 



352 History of Georgia 

From the small establishment in 1866 the parent 
institution has grown until in 1913 the faculty num- 
bers 61 members, including seven tutors; and the 
enrollment for 1912-1913, including the Summer 
School of 1912, was 1,210. 

Branch Colleges 

The Constitution of 1877 provided that thereafter 
no appropriations for education other than for ele- 
mentary schools should be made except to the Uni- 
versity of Georgia. The idea was to build up a great 
university system of state supported higher institu- 
tions. The subsequently established School of 
Technology, at Atlanta; the Girls' Normal and In- 
dustrial school, at Milledgeville; the State Normal 
for Colored Youths, at Savannah, and the Normal 
School, at Athens; the Georgia Industrial College 
for Colored Youth, at Savannah, and the Normal 
School, at Valdosta, are thus in law members of the 
university system. The North Georgia Agricultural 
College, at Dahlonega, and the Medical College, at 
Augusta, have also been adopted into the university 
family. These institutions are self-governing, each 
institution having its own president and board of 
trustees. A closer coordination of the several insti- 
tutions was brought about by an act of 1909, putting 
three members of the board of trustees of the parent 
Universitv at Athens on each of the local boards of 
the branch institutions, and making the presidents 



History of Gcor<iia 



353 



of the local boards ex-officio members of the board of 
trustees of the University. The total enrollment in 
the entire system for 191 2-19 13 (exclusive of students 
of primary and secondary grade) was 3,873. 

The university system is inadequately supported by 
the state. This results from no unwillingness on the 
part of the legislators (they have, in fact, been very 




Georgia School of Technology. 
By Permission of Haines Photo Co, 

liberal), but arises from our defective method of 
taxation. The bill passed in the closing days of the 
legislative session of 1913 (see p. 358), revising the 
administration of the tax laws, will, it is hoped, re- 
sult in a large increase in the revenues of the state, 
and thus make possible greater appropriations for 
educational purposes. 



354 History of Georgia 

REFORM OF THE CONVICT SYSTEM 

Origin of the Leasing System in Georgia 

Prior to 1866 the convicts of Georgia were con- 
fined in a central penitentiary, located at Milledge- 
ville. The total number of convicts in i860 was 
about 250, all whites. All except the most serious 
crimes of slaves were punished by their masters. On 
emancipation, however, it became necessary for the 
state to deal with colored law breakers, and presently 
the capacity of the penitentiary was overtaxed. The 
state was confronted with the alternatives of greatly 
enlarging the penitentiary or of adopting some other 
method of handling the prisoners. As the state was 
nearly bankrupt at the time, the Legislature author- 
ized, in 1866, the leasing of convicts to contractors 
engaged on public works. In 1874 ^^^ leasing of con- 
victs to private individuals for general work was 
legalized for five years, and later the system was ex- 
tended for twenty years, or until 1899. 

The First Reform, 1897 

The system proved thoroughly bad in its effects. 
Convicts were abused, while individuals and cor- 
porations grew rich on the products of the enforced 
labor. The first reform came in 1897 with the estab- 
lishment of a Prison Commission. The commission, 
which was also made a Board of Pardons, was 
directed to purchase a prison farm, where females, 
aged and infirm men, and boys under fifteen were to 



History of Georgia 35o 

be confined and required to do field work. The able- 
bodied prisoners were divided into two classes. The 
short term convicts (those sentenced for ^yq years 
or less) were to be employed by the counties in work- 
ing the public roads. The long term convicts (those 
sentenced for more than fivt years) and any short 
term convicts not taken by the counties were author- 
ized to be leased to the highest bidder. On the farm 
the law directed that men and women, and whites 
and blacks, should be kept separate, and that boys 
under fifteen should be segregated, so as to prevent 
contact with hardened criminals. This system was 
established for five years from 1899. 

The law sought in every way possible to protect 
the convict: wardens, physicians, inspectors, chap- 
lains and guards were appointed and paid by the 
state. Minute specifications were laid down as to 
food, clothing and sleeping arrangements. In 1903 
the system was extended to 1909. 

Investigation and Abolition of the System 

Criticism of the system became so widespread as 
to lead to a legislative inquiry in 1908. Representa- 
tive C. Murphey Candler, of DeKalb County, took 
the lead in the matter. It was proved that the 
wardens and guards, while in the pay of the state, 
had accepted additional salaries from the lessees of 
convicts; that far from safeguarding the interests 
of the state and of the convicts, they had become the 



SoiS History of Georj^ia 

servants of the lessees. Unusual and cruel punish- 
ment of convicts was also proved, as well as gross 
incompetence and mismanagement in the conduct of 
the prison farm. Public sentiment, therefore, de- 
mianded the abolition of the leasing system; and the 
Act of 1908 carrying into effect the will of the people 
has as its underlying principle this statement: ''The 
control and management of its (the state's) convicts, 
both felony and misdemeanor, shall never pass from 
it and its public officials into the control and man- 
agement of any private corporation or person." This 
act provided for the continuation of the prison farm 
for aged and infirm males, females and boys under 
fifteen, and directed that all able-bodied convicts be 
turned over to the counties for use on the public 
roads. 

The Good Roads Movement 

Aside from the humanitarian aspect of the mat- 
ter, which was the decisive consideration, the reform 
of the convict system has had a most important 
economic result. The counties, with this cheap labor 
available, began at once to improve their roads. In- 
terest in better highways has grown so rapidly as to 
place Georgia in the front rank in this respect. 
Recent statistics showed that in 1912 only New York 
state constructed more mileage of improved roads 
than Georgia. The School of Engineering of the 
University of Georgia, of which Professor Charles 



History of Georgia 







An Improved Road. 



M. Strahan is the head, has been most active in 
cooperating with the county authorities, and recently 
a road expert has been added to his staff, who gives 
his entire time to furthering the cause of good roads. 



The Prohibition Law 

A measure of far-reaching significance is the Act 
of 1907 prohibiting the sale or manufacture of spiritu- 
ous liquors in Georgia. Representative L. G. Hard- 
man, of Jackson County, was largely responsible for 
the passage of the act. The inability of the state 
under federal law to control shipments of intoxicants 
from "wet" states, and the strong sentiment adverse to 
prohibition in the cities, have made the enforcement 
of the law very difficult. The Webb Act, passed 
by Congress in 1913, is intended to remedy this situa- 



358 History of Georgia 

tion by prohibiting the railroads from carrying into 
a dry state liquors to be used in violation of state 
law. Prohibitionists hope this measure will be of 
material assistance in their efifort to enforce the law. 

Disfranchisement Amendment, 1908 

In 1908 Georgia followed the example of other 
Southern states in adopting a constitutional amend- 
ment placing certain restrictions about the exercise 
of the privilege of voting. The purpose of the 
amendment was to disfranchise the negroes, the ma- 
jority of whom are unfitted for exercising the 
suffrage. If properly enforced, without regard to 
race, this amendment would be of great benefit in 
teaching the uneducated and thriftless classes that 
the suffrage is not to be considered as a financial 
asset, but a privilege to be won by the acquistion 
of property or by the acquiring of at least a modi- 
cum of learning. The provisions of this amendment 
will be given in the appendix (see p. 380). 

Reform in the Administration of the Tax Laws, 1913. 

The most important legislative measure of many 
years was the passage in August, 191 3, of the Lips- 
comb-Anderson-Miller Bill, revising the adminis- 
tration of the tax laws. The bulk of our state revenue 
is raised from what is known as the general property 
tax. Every year property owners "return for taxa- 
tion" their possessions, both real and personal. They 



History of Georgia 359 

go before the tax receiver and state under oath the 
amount of taxable property they own. This has 
proved a poor way of raising revenue, because prop- 
erty owners almost invariably give in their property 
at a small percentage of its real value, and often fail 
entirely to return certain forms of property. Except 
in a few of the more important cities and towns, 
there has heretofore been no way of checking up the 
returns of individuals, or of equalizing the returns 
as between counties. In some counties, for instance, 
land is returned at twenty dollars per acre, whereas 
in adjoining counties, where the land is equally as 
good. It is returned at from two to five dollars per 
acre. Responding to a widespread demand for a 
fairer enforcement of the law, the legislature in 1913, 
after a long struggle, passed a bill to revise the sys- 
tem. The bill created a Tax Commissioner,^ with 
offices in the capitol, charged with the general over- 
sight of the system of taxation, and especially with 
the duty of equalizing the returns from the dififerent 
counties. Furthermore, in the several counties the 
Board of County Commissioners (or where there is 
no such Board the Ordinary) is directed to appoint 
three freeholders as tax assessors. They are expected 
to supervise the returns of the individual property 
owners and to search for concealed sources of 



^ Governor Slaton immediately after sis:nin^ t^p ^^] appointed 
Ju(lg:e John C. Hart, of Greene County, as the first Tax Com- 
missioner — a very fortunate choice. 



360 History of Georgia 

revenue. This bill is a noteworthy step in the right 
direction. Especial credit for its passage is due to 
Representative Frank A. Lipscomb of Clarke County. 



RECENT POLITICAL HISTORY 

The Solid Derrocracy, 1870-1890 

We have seen how in the disintegration of political 
parties in the decade preceding the Civil War the 
masses of Northern voters entered the Republican 
Party, while practically all Southerners became 
Democrats. The unfortunate conditions immediately 
after the War made it necessary for the white men 
of the South to act together in politics in order to 
free the South of negro and carpet-bag domination: 
Democratic success meant home rule by the best 
element of our people. As time went on, the neces- 
sity for this political solidarity became less urgent, 
but sentiment has served to prevent the development 
of a strong Republican following in the state. 

The People's Party, 1890-1898 

Only during the nineties has there been a serious 
break in the Democratic Party in Georgia. During 
that period of great agricultural depression, a move- 
ment known as the Farmers' Alliance sprang up, the 
purpose of the organization being to obtain govern- 
ment aid for the farmers. In 1890 the organization 



History of Gcori^ia 361 

was strong enough to elect William J. Northen' to 
the governorship. Early in the nineties the Farmers' 
Alliance and other similar organizations united and 
formed the People's Party, sometimes referred to as 
the Populist Party or the Third Party. Their can- 
didate for President in 1892 polled a heavy vote in 
Georgia, and W. L. Peek, of Conyers, People's Party 
candidate for governor, received about one-fourth of 
the total vote cast. Thomas E. Watson, congress- 
man from the Tenth District, ran for reelection as a 
Populist, and after a bitterly contested election, was 
defeated by J. C. C. Black, of Augusta. In 1894 
J. K. Hines, of Atlanta, was the gubernatorial can- 
didate of the People's Party, and though defeated by 
William Y. Atkinson, the Democratic nominee, he 
polled forty-two per cent of the total vote. Governor 
Atkinson was reelected in 1896 over the Populist 
candidate, Seaborn Wright, of Rome. Wright polled 
about forty per cent of the total vote. On the national 



^William Jonathan Northen (1835-1913) was born In Jones 
County, Georgia. After being graduated from Mercer University 
in 1853, he devoted himself to teaching for twenty years, and 
throughout his life was keenly interested in educational affairs. 
Retiring from teaching in 1873, Mr. Northen became a farmer 
and at once took a leading part in organizations looking to the 
betterment of farm conditions. His political career began in 
1877. He served in the house of representatives and state senate, 
and was governor for two terms, 1890 to 1894. It: was largely 
through his efforts that the State Normal School was established. 
In addition to the other activities of his very busy liNj, Governor 
Northen was an earnest w^orker for immigration ; and for many 
years was President of the Baptist State Convention. 



362 History of Georgia 

People's Party ticket, Thomas E. Watson was the 
candidate for vice-president. Though unsuccessful 
at the polls, the People's Party powerfully afifected 
the Democratic Party, which adopted many planks 
in the Populistic platform and enacted legislation 
carrying into effect the new party's demands. This 
fact and the return of prosperity in the late nineties 
resulted in the decline of the Populistic movement; 
and the Democratic candidate in 1898, Allen D. 
Candler, was overwhelmingly elected over J. R. 
Hogan, the Populist candidate. 

The Smith and Brown Factions 

On the disappearance of the People's Party the 
Democrats resumed their former dominant position. 
During the last six or seven years the party has been 
divided into two well-defined wings, led by Hoke 
Smith and Joseph M. Brown, respectively. The 
situation recalls the era of the Troup and Clarke 
Parties in the twenties. Hoke Smith^ was elected 



^ Hoke Smith was born in 1855 in North Carolina. He was 
educated by his father, who was a professor in the University of 
North Carolina. He became prominent in Democratic councils, 
and on Cleveland's second election was appointed Secretary of 
the Interior. After having been twice governor of Georgia, Mr. 
Smith went to the United States Senate, succeeding Senator 
Joseph M. Terrell, who had been appointed by Governor Brown 
to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Senator A. S. Clay. 
Governor Smith's administration was characterized by some nota- 
ble reforms, such as the reorganization of the Railroad Com- 
mission, the disfranchisement of the negroes, and the reform of 



History of Georgia 363 

governor in 1907 on a platform advocating more 
effective regulation of railroads and other corporate 
interests. During his administration he removed 
from office Joseph M. Brown/ who was a member 
of the State Railroad Commission. Ex-Commis- 
sioner Brown then offered for the governorship and 
after an exciting campaign defeated Senator Smith 
in the contest of 1909. The fight was continued at 
the next election, and Smith was successful. He re- 
signed, however, in a few months to become United 
States Senator. At a special election held to fill the 
unexpired term. Governor Brown had no opposition. 
At the Fall election of 191 2, former President of the 
Senate John M. Slaton^ was elected governor without 
opposition. 



the convict system. As United States Senator, he Is one of the 
leaders on the Democratic side. His principal Interest is \n the 
enactment of measures looking to the governmental assistance of 
the farming element of the country. 

^Joseph M. Brown was born at Canton, Georgia, In 1 851. 
He Is a son of Joseph E. Brown, governor during the Civil War. 
For seventeen years Governor Brown was connected with the 
Western and Atlantic Railroad, as general freight and passenger 
agent and traffic manager. From 1904 to 1907, he served as a 
member of the State Railroad Commission. His two terms as 
governor were from 1909 to 191 1 and from January, 1912, to 
June, 1 91 3. Governor Brown has found time in the midst of a 
busy life to produce several works of a historical and literary 
nature, the most Important of them being his "Mountain Cam- 
paigns In Georgia," during the Civil War. 

^ John M. Slaton was born In Meriwether County, Georgia, 
in 1866. He was graduated from the University of Georgia in 
1886 and soon went into politics. He was a member of the House 



364: History of Georgia 

Summary 

The post-bellum period of Georgia history has 
been one of marvellous progress. Not only in ma- 
terial development, but in educational and social 
reform the state has made notable strides. A system 
of free public schools has been in successful opera- 
tion for forty years, the effect of which is seen in 
the greatly lowered percentage of illiteracy; the insti- 
tutions of higher learning have been revolutionized, 
and many new ones established to teach science and 
engineering; normal schools for the training of 
teachers have been opened in all sections of the state, 
and they are full to overflowing. There has been a 
real awakening of interest in scientific agriculture, a 
movement carefully encouraged by federal and 
state governments. Fundamentally important re- 
forms have been carried out, such as the abolition 
of the convict leasing system, the enactment of state- 
wide prohibition, the disfranchisement of the igno- 
rant and thriftless element of the population; and the 
reform in the administration of the tax law. All 
these changes and developments are rapidly plac- 
ing Georgia in the forefront of progressive states. 



of Representatives for thirteen years, serving as speaker four years. 
He was also a member of the senate for four years, and held the 
position of President of the body. His term as governor began 
in June, 191 3- While in the legislature Governor Slaton favored 
the abolition of the convict system ; abolition of free passes over 
railroads; establishment of agricultural high schools, and many 
other important measures. 



History of Georgia 365 

Georgians can but point with pride to the quick 
recovery and wonderful progress the state has made 
since the upheaval of the sixties. 

Additional Reading. 

Material progress: Bulletins of the United States Census of 
1910, on Agriculture, Population and Manufactures in Georgia. 
Education: Report of the State Superintendent of Schools, 191 1 
(see Letter of Transmittal). Country Life Problems: Publica- 
tions of the Georgia Club of the State Normal Scliool (Professor 
E. C. Branson, Athens, Ga.). 



CHAPTER XXVII 

SOME GREAT GEORGIANS 

For ages it has been the common practice of his- 
torians to confine their writings to political and mili- 
tary history. Great statesmen and military leaders 
have tended to monopolize the attention of the world, 
to the exclusion of men whose accomplishments, 
though less full of incident and less brilliant, are by 
no means less fundamentally important. It would 
be most unfortunate if students should come to feel 
that undying fame cannot be won except in the coun- 
cil room or on the battle field. In science, litera- 
ture, journalism, education, and law, Georgia has pro- 
duced men of eminence. Within a single brief chap- 
ter it is impossible even to refer by name to all the 
men whose memories should be kept alive. Some 
half dozen names, however, stand out clearly in the 
several professions mentioned. 

Crawford Williamson Long (1815-1878) 

Dr. Long ranks first among Georgians men of 
science, his fame being due to his discovery of the 
effects of sulphuric ether in deadening pain. Dr. 
Long was born in Madison County, Georgia. When 
old enough to go to college, young Long matriculated 

366 



History of Georgia 367 

at the University of Georgia, and while there was a 
room-mate of Alexander H. Stephens. It is an odd 
coincidence that these two men were after many years 
selected as Georgia's representatives in Statuary Hall 
at Washington. 

Being graduated from the University in 1835, 
and having decided on medicine as a profession, 
Long entered the University of Pennsylvania, and 
was graduated from the medical department in 1839. 
He returned to Georgia and located at Jefiferson, 
Jackson County. At that time "nitrous oxide parties" 
were a popular social diversion. Persons inhaling 
this gas became hilarious and amused the spectators 
by their antics. Dr. Long tried sulphuric ether and 
found that it had the same effect. He made the 
discovery that young men were apparently uncon- 
scious of bruises and hurts received while under the 
influence of the ether, and this suggested the pos- 
sibility of giving the ether to patients before per- 
forming surgical operations. In 1842 he removed a 
tumor from the neck of a patient to whom ether had 
been administered. This was the first use of anaes- 
thetics in surgery. 

Other physicians, Wells, Jackson and Morton were 
experimenting along the same line, and all seem to 
have made independent discovery of the principle 
of anaesthesia. But Dr. Long's discovery preceded 
theirs, and though a long and angry discussion fol- 
lowed, the medical world now acknowledges the 



368 History of Georgia 

Georgia physician's priority. The University of 
Pennsylvania has recently erected a tablet to Long's 
memory, proclaiming him as the discoverer of 
anaesthesia, and a monument to him has been erected 
in one of the streets of Paris. 

It need scarcely be said that no more important 
discovery has ever been made than this. Few surgi- 
cal operations of importance are now made until 
ether has been administered. How many lives have 
been saved, how much pain has been quieted by this 
contribution of a Georgia physician to the science of 
medicine! 

Sidney Lanier (i 842-1881) 

While Georgia has been more prolific of men of 
action than of literary geniuses, some of our poets 
and prose writers have won more than local fame. 
Of the poets, Sidney Lanier is immeasurably the 
greatest. Working under the disadvantages of ill 
health and poverty, it is remarkable how much he 
accomplished in his brief life of thirty-nine years. 
Lanier ranks first not only among Southern poets, 
but is rapidly obtaining recognition as perhaps the 
greatest of American poets. Oddly enough. South- 
erners are much more familiar with even the second- 
rate poets of other sections than with their own 
Lanier. In addition to his wonderful skill in putting 
his thoughts into verse form, Lanier was an able 
prose writer, an accomplished musician and a lee- 



History of Gcon^ia .■>()'.) 

turer on English literature. He was the author of 
several volumes of prose, was considered one of the 
best flute players in America while playing in the 
Peabody Symphony Orchestra at Baltimore, and lec- 
tured for a time on English literature at the Johns 
Hopkins University. 

Lanier's message was to all mankind. He rose 
above merely local interests, and appealed to the 
mind and heart of the race. The most noted of his 
poems are "The Marshes of Glynn" and the "Song 
of the Chattahoochee," which immortalize two wide- 
ly different physical characteristics of Georgia; the 
"Symphony," "Corn," and "Sunrise." 

George Foster Pierce (1811-1884) 

Renowned as Georgia's most famous preacher and 
one of her leading educators. Pierce was graduated at 
eighteen from the University of Georgia. He became 
a Methodist circuit rider, the only college trained 
man in the conference at the time he joined. While 
still a very young man, Mr. Pierce was regarded as 
one of the leading men in his profession. His ad- 
vancement was rapid, the Bishopric being attained 
at the age of forty-three. 

Wesleyan Female College at Macon has the dis- 
tinction of being the oldest chartered female college 
with the power to confer degrees. When it was 
opened in 1839, Mr. Pierce, then only twenty-eight 
years old, became its first president. The institution 



370 History of Georgia 

became involved in financial difficulties, and Pierce 
resigned to canvass for funds for it. He succeeded 
in having the institution bought by the Metho- 
dist Conference, and it has since been under the 
control of that church, though originally intended as 
an unsectarian college. Nine years later (1848), 
Mr. Pierce became president of Emory College, re- 
taining this post until his election as Bishop in 1854. 
After the Civil War, Emory was in a thoroughly 
disorganized condition. Bishop Pierce again took 
the helm and revived the institution. 

The esteem in which Bishop Pierce was univer- 
sally held is indicated by the words of General 
Robert Toombs: ''Bishop Pierce was the greatest 
man I ever knew. He was the most beautiful in 
person, the purest in morals, and the greatest in in- 
tellect." 

Henry Woodfin Grady (1851-1889) 

What other Georgian now occupies so firm a place 
in the affections of our people as Henry Grady! Born 
during the excitement of the Compromise of 1850, 
his early youth was spent in the midst of prepara- 
tions for war, listening to tales of battle, and later 
to harassing accounts of Reconstruction. That his 
mission in life should have been to restore cordial 
relations between the North and South is amazing 
in view of the bias his youthful mind must have 
received. 



History of Georgia 371 

Born in Athens, Henry Grady matriculated at the 
University of Georgia and was a member of the 
class of 1868; and later he took a course in the Uni- 
versity of Virginia. At both institutions he made 
a reputation as an orator. Choosing journalism as 
a profession, Mr. Grady went to New York to seek 
a position. We let him tell his own experience when 
he applied to the New York Herald: "The Herald 
manager asked me if I knew anything about politics. 
I replied that I knew very little about anything else. 
'Well then,' he said, 'sit at this desk and write me 
an article on State Conventions in the South.' With 
these words he tossed me a pad and left me alone 
in the room. When my taskmaster returned I had 
finished the article and was leaning back in m\ 
chair with my feet on the desk. 'Why, Mr. Grady, 
what is the matter?' asked the managing editor. 
'Nothing,' I replied, 'except that I am through; 
'Very well,' he said, 'leave your copy on the desk, and 
if it amounts to anything I will let you hear from 
me. Where are you stopping?' I replied, 'At the 
Astor House.' 

"Early next morning, before getting out of bed 
I rang for a bell boy and ordered the Herald. I 
actually had not strength enough to get up and dress 
myself until I could see whether or not my artick 
had been used. I opened the Herald with trem- 
bling hand, and when I saw that 'State Conventions 
in the South' was on the editorial page I fell back 



372 History of Georgia 

on the bed, buried my face in the pillow and cried 
like a child. When I went back to the Herald 
office that day the managing editor received me 
cordially and said: 'You can go back to Georgia, 
Mr. Grady, and consider yourself in the employ of 
the Herald f " 

Mr. Grady returned to Georgia and was at once 
offered a place on The Atlanta Constitution, a posi- 
tion which did not interfere with his duties as corre- 
spondent for the Herald. He made the Constitu- 
tion the greatest of Southern newspapers. His repu- 
tation as a journalist and orator grew with every 
year, and in 1886 he was honored by an invitation to 
address the New England Society. His subject was 
''The New South." It may well be doubted whether 
any speech delivered in the United States since the 
Civil War has commanded such attention from the 
nation. It was a powerful plea for a reunited coun- 
try, and had a wonderful effect in softening the hearts 
of men in the two sections. After this speech, Grady 
was constantly in demand as an orator, and delivered 
many notable addresses, one of the most famous of 
which was delivered in Boston a few months before 
his death, in his thirty-eighth year. On his tomb- 
stone are these words : "When he died he was literally 
loving a nation into peace." 

Joel Chandler Harris (1848-1908) 

Among our prose writers several men would re- 



History of Georgia 373 

ceive attention in a more extended work than this. 
Judge A. B. Longstreet, author of ^'Georgia 
Scenes"; Charles H. Smith, better known as "Bill 
Arp"; Richard Malcolm Johnston, who, in interest- 
ing novels, has sketched Middle Georgia life of half 
a century ago; Charles Colcock Jones, whose history 
of Georgia has been pronounced the best of the state 
histories; Will N. Harben, whose stories of the 
Georgia mountaineers have won for him a nation- 
wide audience: the works of these and many others 
should be familiar to every Georgia boy and girl. 
We are all, happily, familiar with the wonderful 
stories of Joel Chandler Harris. Only he and Sid- 
ney Lanier have won the recognition of the world 
at large. 

Born and reared in the Black Belt of Georgia, Mr. 
Harris had a keen appreciation of the oddities of no- 
gro character and no one has ever equalled him in 
reproducing the negro dialect. His Uncle Remus 
and other books are read in every land where English 
is spoken. ''The Wren's Nest," Mr. Harris's home 
in Atlanta, has been bought by popular subscriptions 
and is to be preserved as a memorial to the great 
humorist. In addition to his dialect stories, Mr. 
Harris was the author of several works in more seri- 
ous vein, among others a charming little volume 
called "Stories of Georgia," to which references are 
made in the Additional Readings of this book; and a 
biography of Henry Grady. 



374 History of Georgia 

Logan Edwin Bleckley (1827-1907) 

In Georgia the law has always been most alluring 
to men of conspicuous ability. Sketches of many of 
the eminent lawyers of the state have been given in 
their appropriate places. Many others might be 
mentioned, such as Eugenius A. Nisbet, chairman of 
the Committee that drew up the Ordinance of Seces- 
sion in 1861; Francis S. Bartow, killed in the first 
battle of Manassas; Joseph H. Lumpkin, first Chief 
Justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia; Joseph R. 
Lamar, appointed by President Taft as Associate 
Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States; 
Charles F. Crisp, Speaker of the National House of 
Representatives, in the 53rd Congress; Walter B. 
Hill, who gave up his practice to become Chan- 
cellor of the University and restore the institution to 
its rightful position in the state; Augustus O. Bacon, 
United States Senator since 1894. Members of the 
bar themselves, however, would probably agree that 
former Chief Justice Logan E. Bleckley was the 
most accomplished jurist the state has produced. 

Judge Bleckley was born in Rabun County, Geor- 
gia. Frail and sickly, young Bleckley cared little 
for the ordinary pleasures of boys of his age, but 
devoted himself to hard study. He had no money 
to pay for a school or college education, or even to 
buy books. Nevertheless he prepared himself to 
stand the bar examinations and was admitted to prac- 
tice in 1846. There was but little to do in his remote 



History of Georgia 375 

mountain county, and he was forced to suspend his 
practice and take employment as a bookkeeper for 
the State Railroad. He later became one of the gov- 
ernor's secretaries; and in 1864 was made a Supreme 
Court reporter. In 1875 he was appointed to the 
Supreme Court, but the work proved too severe and 
he retired five years later. He was subsequently 
made Chief Justice and held the office until his final 
retirement in 1894. It was as a Supreme Court Jus- 
tice that Bleckley made his name famous. He not 
only had one of the keenest legal minds in America, 
but through long and painful toil acquired a master- 
ly literary style. Judge Bleckley made an extraor- 
dinary impression on the lawyers who practiced in 
his court. A poet of no mean ability; bubbling over 
with wit and humor; profoundly versed in legal prin- 
ciples, he ranks as one of the great jurists of our time. 
Some of his decisions have been given a place in the 
compilation known as '^Great Decisions by Great 
Judges." 

Mr. Justice Lamar in a sketch of Judge Bleckley 
says that his opinions '^are the most quotable extant, 
and sparkle, not with an occasional, but with a mul- 
titude of sayings — pithy, humorous, wise; couched in 
language so perfect that they charm both the layman 
and the lawyer. * * * But Judge Bleckley's repu- 
tation does not rest upon his brilliant sentences. They 
are but the flashes of his genius. His sure and na- 
tional reputation as a great judge rests upon the sol- 



376 History of Georgia 

idity of his learning, his profound knowledge of the 
law, and the value of his opinions contained in the 

Georgia Reports." 

«^ 

Additional Reading. 

Crawford W. Long: Harris, Joel Chandler, Stories of Georgia, 
170-173; The Literature of Georgia: Smith, C. H., History of 
Georgia, chapter XXXVIII; Sketches of Long, Lanier, Pierce, 
Grady and Bleckley: Northen, W. J., Men of Mark in Georgia, 
II, III, IV. 



APPENDIX I 

CIVIL GOVERNMENT OF GEORGIA^ 

Constitution of 1877- 

The Constitution under which we now live was 
adopted in 1877. As soon as the carpet-bag govern- 
ment was overthrown, a demand arose that a new 
Constitution be made by the white people of the 
state. Many iniquities had been practised under the 
Constitution of 1868, prepared by adventurers and 
negroes. The state had become liable for millions 
under the constitutional provision permitting state 



^ McPherson, J. H. T., History and Civil Government of Geor- 
gia. Contains a full description of the civil government of the 
state. 

^ The War Constitutions. On seceding from the Union in 
1 86 1, the people of Georgia adopted a new Constitution, in order 
that the fundamental law of the state might conform to her 
position as an independent state in the Southern Confederacy. 
There were no changes of special interest. The second war Con- 
stitution was adopted in 1865, during the Presidential Recon- 
struction. The most notable changes were the abolition of slavery, 
and the provisions for securing civil rights to the freedmen. The 
third of the revolutionary constitutions was prepared by the con- 
vention summoned by General Meade, military governor, in 1868. 
The right of suffrage was conferred on the blacks ; free schools 
were established and a provision made for their maintenance; the 
term of office of the governor was extended from two to four 
years; the endorsement of railroad bonds by the state was made 
legal; as well as the unlimited issue of bonds for educational 
purposes. 

377 



378 History of Georgia 

endorsement of railroad bonds. The following para- 
graphs are an analysis of the government of Georgia 
as found in the last Constitution and the amendments 
adopted from time to time. 

Bill of Rights 

The first Article of the Constitution is called the 
Bill of Rights. In it the people are guaranteed those 
fundamental rights which our English ancestors and 
colonial fathers fought to secure. Such privileges 
are the right to trial by jury; the right of a person 
charged with crime to have a copy of the accusation 
and a list of the witnesses on whose testimony the 
charge is brought; the right to the writ of habeas 
corpus; the right of religious freedom, of freedom 
of the press and free speech. The Bill of Rights 
protects the citizen from arbitrary arrest and his per- 
son and property from arbitrary search. So accus- 
tomed are we to the enjoyment of these rights, they 
seem so ordinary and commonplace, that it is almost 
impossible for us to understand that many centuries 
of agitation and bloodshed were the price paid by 
our ancestors for these inestimable privileges. The 
possession of them makes us a civilized nation, for 
such rights do not exist in barbarous, semi-civilized, 
or despotically governed countries. 

The Elective Franchise 

Just as precious a right as any we enjoy is that of 
self-government. The Constitution creates a ma- 



History of Georgia 379 

chinery of government, described below, and pro- 
vides for certain officers to conduct this government. 
The people control the officers through the exercise 
of the ballot or franchise. Should the elected officers 
undertake to infringe on any rights of the people, 
they may be turned out of office. 

Before the Civil War the individual states made 
any laws they desired in the matter of voting. Exer- 
cising such control, Georgia had extended the right 
of suffrage only to white men over twenty-one years 
of age. But the Fifteenth Amendment to the Fed- 
eral Constitution requires that no distinction in this 
matter be made on account of race, color or previous 
condition of servitude. Hence the negroes of Geor- 
gia became electors. In 1908, Georgia adopted an 
amendment to the constitution with the purpose of 
disfranchising the negroes, the vast majority of 
whom regarded the franchise as a financial asset. It 
is evident from the terms of the law that all negroes 
are not disfranchised. The possession of a small sum 
of money or of the rudiments of an education restores 
the ballot to many worthy negroes. Ignorant and 
thriftless whites are allowed to vote under clause (c) 
of the amendment. If this provision were struck out 
and the whole law applied justly to whites and 
blacks, it would have a salutary effect in creating 
in the minds of the people respect for the ballot. As 
the law now stands, a stimulus is given the negroes 
to acquire property and education; but no such in- 



380 History of Georgia 

centive is held out to the whites, of whom a large 
element do not understand the proper use of the bal- 
lot. The following is now the suffrage law: 

1. Males who are citizens of the state and of the 
United States, not less than twenty-one years of age, 
and not disqualified by any provision of the law, are 
electors. 

2. Before being entitled to register and vote, one 
must have resided in the state a year next preceding 
the election and in the county in which he offers to 
vote at least six months; must have paid all taxes 
required since the adoption of the constitution of 
1877; and such payment of taxes must be made at 
least six months prior to the election at which he 
proposes to vote, except when such election is held 
within six months from the expiration of the time 
fixed by law for the payment of taxes. 

3. In addition to the two clauses above, the pros- 
pective voter must fall within at least one of the fol- 
lowing five classes (Amendment of 1908) : 

a. He must have served honorably in some war 
in which the United States has engaged or in the 
War Between the States; or 

b. Be lawfully descended from some veteran; or 

c. Be of good character, and understand the du- 
ties and obligations of citizenship under a republican 
form of government; or 

d. Be able to read correctly in English any para- 
graph of the Constitution of the United States or of 



History of Geoj-gia 381 

this State, and write the same correctly in English; or 
e. Own at least forty acres of land situated in this 
state, upon which he resides; or be the owner of 
property in this state, assessed for taxation at not less 
than five hundred dollars. 

The suffrage is withheld from persons convicted 
of crimes involving moral turpitude, unless they have 
been pardoned; and from idiots and insane persons. 
Clauses (a) and (b) of paragraph 3 are only tem- 
porary. The right to register under them ceases on 
January i, 1915, so that the ^^grandfather" feature of 
the suffrage law will in time be inoperative. 

The Three Branches of Government 

The government created by the Constitution con- 
sists of an Executive, a Legislative, and a Judicial 
Department. The Executive is the Governor, Sec- 
retary of State, Comptroller-General, Treasurer, and 
a number of administrative Boards, such as the 
Prison Commission and the Railroad Commission. 
The Legislative consists of a Senate and a House of 
Representatives; while under the Judiciary come 
the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals, the Su- 
perior Courts, and certain inferior courts. 

EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 
The Governor 

The Governor is elected by popular vote for a 
term of two years. He may run for re-election, but 



382 History of Georgia 

after a second term is not again eligible until after 
the expiration of four years. Residence in the United 
States for fifteen years and in Georgia six years are 
required of the Governor; and he must be not less 
than thirty years of age. The salary is $5,000.00 per 
annum. The duties of the Governor are many and 
important. He is commander-in-chief of the military 
forces of the state; has power to grant reprieves and 
pardons, except in cases of treason and impeach- 
ment; is empowered to fill by appointment many im- 
portant offices, and to fill unexpired terms in some 
elective offices, such as the United States Senatorship. 
The Governor possesses a restricted right of veto 
over all legislation. A two-thirds vote of both houses 
of the Legislature sets aside his veto. 

The Secretary of State 

The Secretary of State performs many important 
duties, among which may be mentioned the duty of 
preserving the original acts and journals of the Legis- 
lature, as well as other public documents; he is also 
keeper of the Great Seal of the State. 

The Treasurer 

The Treasurer receives all money due the state. 
He disburses funds on the order of the Governor, 
countersigned by the Comptroller-General. Since 
1907 the Treasurer has had added to his duties that 
of examining the banks of the state. 



History of Georgia 383 

The Comptroller 

The Comptroller-General is the Auditor of the 
state. All accounts against the state must be approved 
by him before payment and he countersigns all vouch- 
ers on the Treasury. He also has oversight over the 
collection of taxes, one of the most important func- 
tions of government. He is required to submit an- 
nually to the Legislature a schedule of all appropria- 
tions made during the current year, and a set of tables 
showing the taxable property of the state, both real 
and personal. Property of whites and negroes is 
separately listed. 

In addition to these manifold duties, the Comp- 
troller-General, as State Insurance Commissioner, 
has general oversight over all insurance companies 
doing business in Georgia. 

Other Executive Officers and Boards 

In addition to the above officers, there is a State 
Superintendent of Schools, an Attorney-General, a 
Railroad Commission, a Commissioner of Pensions, a 
Prison Commission, a State Board of Health, a Com- 
missioner of Agriculture, a Labor Commissioner and 
other Boards. The functions of these offices are 
fairly obvious from the names. 

LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 
The Senate 

Georgia is divided into forty-four districts of three 
or four counties each. Each district elects a Senator 



384 History of Georgia 

for a term of two years. Senators must not be less 
than twenty-five years of age, must have resided in 
the state four years and in the district one year. A 
president of the Senate is elected by viva voce vote 
from among the Senators. In case of the death or 
resignation of the Governor, the president of the Sen- 
ate (or in case of his death, resignation or disability, 
the Speaker of the House of Representatives) be- 
comes the acting governor, but it is his duty imme- 
diately to order an election for the unexpired term, 
to be held not less than thirty nor more than sixty 
days after he enters upon the discharge of the duties 
of the office. The Senate has the sole right to try 
impeachments. 

The House of Representatives 

The House of Representatives consists of one 
hundred and eighty-four members, distributed as fol- 
lows : The six counties having the largest population 
are entitled to three members each; the next twenty- 
six counties in rank have two members each, and the 
remaining one hundred and sixteen counties one each. 
The Census of 1910 shows that Fulton, Chatham, 
Richmond, Bibb, Muscogee and Floyd are the six 
largest counties. 

This system of representation is open to criticism 
on the ground that the large counties are not ade- 
quately represented. For instance, Fulton County 
has a population of 177,733. The combined popula- 



History of Georgia 385 

tion of Rabun, Towns, Union, Fannin, Lumpkin, 
Habersham, White, Gilmer, and Dawson counties 
is considerably less than half of Fulton's population. 
Yet these nine small counties have three times the 
weight in our Legislature as has Fulton County, not- 
withstanding Fulton's predominance in wealth and 
intelligence. This is a defect that ought to be reme- 
died. The easiest way to do this would be to give 
the cities representation as well as the counties. The 
first constitution of Georgia, 1777, allowed Savannah 
four representatives in addition to those of Chatham 
County; there is no valid reason against this plan. 

The Legislature meets in Atlanta on the fourth 
Wednesday in June each year and sits for fifty days, 
including Sundays, but a practice has grown up of 
taking a recess and declaring by resolution the days 
during which the General Assembly is not in session, 
"dies non," by which means the session is frequently 
prolonged beyond the constitutional period of fifty 
days. This practice is of somewhat doubtful legality, 
and it is even more questionable whether a Sunday 
can be declared to be "dies non." The range of topics 
on which the Legislature may enact laws is extremely 
wide, but many restrictions are imposed by the Con- 
stitution. 

Privileges of the Legislature 

Each House is judge of the election returns of its 
members, and has power to censure, fine, imprison 



386 History of Georgia 

or expel members at its pleasure. Either House may 
imprison any person who may be guilty of contempt 
of the House. Members are free from arrest during 
attendance on the general assembly, except for trea- 
son, felony or breach of the peace. 

Process of Law-making 

Legislation may originate in either House, except 
in the case of money bills, which always originate 
in the House of Representatives. Proposed legisla- 
tion comes before either house in the shape of a 
''bill," which must be read on three different days. 
On the first reading, the bill is usually referred to 
one of the standing committees. When the commit- 
tee reports the bill, it is read the second time. If the 
committee's report is adverse, the bill is usually de- 
bated and disposed of at once; if the committee's 
action is favorable, the bill is held off for a third 
reading, when it is debated, and a vote taken. If 
the measure is passed, it is sent to the other House, 
where the same process is repeated. After both 
Houses have passed the measure, an "enrolled copy" 
is made and signed by the presiding officers of both 
Houses. It is then entered on the journals and sent 
to the Governor. Three courses of action are open 
to the Governor: He may sign the bill, in which case 
it becomes law; he may veto and return it to the Leg- 
islature, with his reasons for disapproval; or he may 
take no action whatever. Should he neither sign nor 



History of Georgia 387 

veto, the bill will automatically become law at the 
expiration of five days, unless the Legislature has 
adjourned in the interim. Should such adjourn- 
ment occur, the bill is defeated — a process known as 
a ''pocket veto." 

THE JUDICIARY 

The Supreme Court 

The Supreme Court was first established in 1845. 
It consisted of three justices, but an amendment of 
1896 increased the number to six. This amendment 
also took from the Governor the appointive power 
and subjected the office to popular election. The 
term of the office is six years. The function of the 
Supreme Court is to correct errors of law and in 
equity in all of the lower courts over which the Court 
of Appeals has not exclusive appellate jurisdiction. 

The Court of Appeals 

The Court of Appeals was created by an amend- 
ment of 1906. It consists of three judges. This court 
was established to relieve the pressure of work on the 
Supreme Court, and is of equal authority with it, 
except that the Supreme Court has exclusive juris- 
diction over cases involving interpretation of the Con- 
stitution. Appeals from city courts lie direct to the 
Court of Appeals. 

Ought Judges to be Elected 

Grave difference of opinion is to be found among 
students of government as to whether judges should 



388 History of Georgia 

be elected by popular vote or be appointed by the 
executive. There are obvious objections to either 
method, but the weight of opinion seems to be that 
judges should be removed as far as possible from the 
temptation to mould their decisions in accordance 
with their political welfare. In this connection the 
history of Courts in Georgia is highly interesting. 
The Constitution of 1861 placed the appointment of 
Supreme Court and Superior Court Judges in the 
hands of the Governor, with the advice and consent 
of the Senate. The next Constitution, 1865, restored 
the election of the Supreme Court justices to the 
Legislature and of Superior Court judges to the 
people of the circuit — the system in operation prior 
to 1 86 1. In 1868 the Governor was again given the 
appointive power for both Supreme and Superior 
Court judges; in 1877 ^^^ Constitution placed the 
election of both classes of judges in the hands of the 
Legislature; and in 1896, both Supreme and Superior 
Court judgeships became subject to popular election. 

Superior Courts 

For judicial purposes, Georgia is divided into 
twenty-five circuits, consisting of from one to ten 
counties each. There is one judge to each circuit, 
except the Atlanta Circuit, which has three judges. 
Superior Courts in most of the counties convene 
twice each year in regular session, though in a few 
counties there are from four to six regular sessions. 



History of Georgia 389 

The Judges and Solicitors-General are elected by the 
people for four year terms. These courts have a 
wide jurisdiction, including divorce cases, criminal 
actions where the penalty is death or imprisonment 
in the penitentiary; litigation involving land titles, 
and equity cases. They also entertain appeals from 
lower courts, except the city courts. 

LOCAL ADMINISTRATION 
The County 

While our laws are made by a central legislative 
body, the administration of these laws is largely in 
the hands of county officials. In no way has the 
Anglo-Saxon genius for politics more admirably 
manifested itself than in the development of local 
government. Each one of the one hundred and 
forty-eight counties in Georgia has a regular form 
of government, with officers in the main elected by 
the people of the county. The powers of these offi- 
cers are principally administrative and judicial. 

The Ordinary 

The most important of the county officers is the 
Ordinary. He is both a judicial and administrative 
officer. He has exclusive jurisdiction over all mat- 
ters concerning the probate of wills; issues letters 
testamentary, letters of administration, guardianship 
and executorship, and preserves the annual returns 
of such trusteeships; grants marriage licenses; and 



390 History of Georgia 

records homesteads and exemptions. The Ordinary's 
administrative duties amount to a general supervi- 
sion and control of all the property of the county, 
such as buildings, roads and bridges. He examines 
and audits the accounts of other county officers. 

In many counties the administrative duties of the 
Ordinary have been placed in the hands of a Board 
of Commissioners of Roads and Revenues, thus re- 
lieving the Ordinary of some of his many duties, and 
making for greater efficiency. 

County Court 

This court has jurisdiction in all civil cases where 
the amount involved does not exceed five hundred 
dollars; and in criminal cases in which the punish- 
ment is not death or confinement in the penitentiary. 
Sessions are held monthly. The Judge and Solicitor 
are appointed by the Governor for four years. Ap- 
peals lie to the Superior Court. 

Some counties have "City Courts" instead of 
County Courts. The City Court has jurisdiction 
over all cases in which exclusive jurisdiction is not 
vested in other courts, and appeals are made direct 
to the Court of Appeals. 

Clerk of the Superior Court 

The records of the Superior Court are kept by a 
Clerk. He is charged also with the important duty 
of keeping records of all transfers of real and per- 
sonal property. 



History of Georgia 391 

Tax Receiver 

This officer is charged with the duty of receiving 
from all property owners annual statements of the 
amount and kinds of their property. When the re- 
turns are in, three digests are made. One of these 
is sent to the Comptroller-General of the state, who 
on the basis of this information levies the state tax, 
another goes to the Ordinary, who fixes the rate of 
the county tax; while the third is put in the hands 
of the tax collector. In addition to these financial 
duties, the tax receiver collects statistics relating to 
acreage planted, acreage of wild lands, and products 
of manufactories. He also registers the number of 
children of school age. 

Juries 

Jurors are chosen by Jury Commissioners, selected 
by the Judge of the Superior Court for six year 
terms. They revise the jury list every second year. 
From the books of the tax receiver, the Commis- 
sioners select a large number of men for service as 
jurors. Lists for Grand Jurors and Petit Jurors are 
made separately. From the lists thus prepared the 
Judge of the Superior Court draws the Grand and 
Petit Jurors for each term of court. The Petit 
Jurors perform general jury duty in the trial of civil 
and criminal cases in the Superior Court. The 
Grand Jury, consisting of not less than eighteen nor 
more than twenty-three men, meets every year for 



392 History of Georgia 

the purpose of auditing the books of county officials 
and inspecting the general affairs of the county. The 
Grand Jury advises the Ordinary in fixing the 
amount of the county tax. It is also charged with 
the duty of presenting for trial all persons whom 
they believe to be guilty of violation of law. 

Other County Officers 

Among other county officers are the Sheriff, Cor- 
oner, Tax Collector, County Surveyor, County Board 
of Education, and County School Superintendent. 

THE MILITIA DISTRICT 

For election and judicial purposes the County is 
subdivided into Militia Districts. As the name im- 
plies, this division was formerly a military one as 
well, each district being so laid out as to include one 
company of soldiers. In each District there is a Jus- 
tice of the Peace and a Notary Public, who is also 
an ex-officio Justice of the Peace. The former is 
elected by the people of the District, the latter is 
appointed by the Superior Court Judge. The Jus- 
tice's Court sits once a month. Its jurisdiction ex- 
tends in civil matters to amounts not exceeding one 
hundred dollars. It has no jurisdiction in criminal 
cases. The Justice is, however, a conservator of the 
peace, issuing warrants for the arrest of persons 
charged with violation of law. He holds what is 
known as a "commitment" trial. After hearing the 



History of Georgia 393 

testimony in the case he may release, bail, or commit 
the prisoner to jail to await trial by the Superior or 
County Court. 

MUNICIPALITIES 

Special problems of government arise where many 
people live together in towns and cities. Among 
these problems are ^'the preservation of order, the 
maintenance of health, the opening and repair of 
streets and sidewalks, the supply of water, and pro- 
tection from fire." Indeed, municipal government 
is considered by some publicists to present more diffi- 
culties than either state or national government. 

In Georgia any place having as many as twenty- 
five electors may apply for incorporation as a town. 
Application is usually made to the Legislature, 
though the Superior Courts may incorporate towns. 
The application contains the form of government 
desired by the people of the proposed town. Ordi- 
narily a very simple government is first established, 
consisting of a mayor, who is the executive and judi- 
cial officer, and a council, which is the legislative 
body. Other officers may be appointed by the coun- 
cil. As the town grows in size and a more complex 
government is needed, amendments of the old char- 
ter are made by the Legislature, or a new char- 
ter is granted. In larger cities the mayor is purely 
an executive officer, the judicial part of his work 
being placed in the hands of a recorder. The coun- 



394 History of Georgia 

cil or board of aldermen in cities is a large and un- 
wieldy body, each ward in the city being repre- 
sented; and many other officers become necessary, 
such as sanitary inspector, street commissioner, and 
superintendent of education. To assist the mayor in 
the administrative duties many boards have been 
created, such as the board of health, the board of edu- 
cation, police commission, park commission, and 
others. The officers have become so numerous with 
the growth of municipal activity, government has be- 
come so complex, the separation of legislative and 
administrative functions so pronounced, that some 
cities of the country have attempted to simplify gov- 
ernment by abolishing the offices of mayor, coun- 
cillor, and the several boards, and placing control in 
the hands of a small commission of about five mem- 
bers, who combine the legislative and executive func- 
tions, and providing machinery by which the electors 
can call the Commission to account, if they fail to 
perform their duties acceptably. This Commission 
form of government has not yet been introduced in 
any Georgia cities. 

CONGRESSIONAL REPRESENTATION 

Georgia has two United States Senators, chosen for 
six year terms. Throughout the history of the na- 
tion, the Senators have been elected by the State 
Legislatures, but in 191 3 an amendment to the Fed- 



History of Georgia 395 

eral Constitution was adopted which transferred the 
election of Senators to the people. 

In the House of Representatives each state has a 
number of representatives determined by its popula- 
tion. An Act of Congress passed in 191 1 fixed the 
basis of representation at one member to every 211,- 
877 inhabitants. Georgia became entitled, therefore, 
under the Census of 19 10, to twelve representatives, 
and the Congressional districts have recently been 
rearranged so as to provide for an additional Con- 
gressman, Georgia having previously had only eleven 
representatives. 

FINANCES 

The Constitution limits the power of the General 
Assembly over taxation to appropriations for the sup- 
port of the state government, public institutions, 
education, interest on and redemption of the public 
debt; the suppression of insurrection, invasion, and 
for defense; and for pensions. An amendment of 
1904 prohibited the levying of a higher rate of taxa- 
tion than five mills on each dollar's worth of prop- 
erty liable for taxation. Under the present law the 
principal sources of revenue, as shown by the Comp- 
troller-Generars Report for 191 1 are: 



396 History of Georgia 

General Property Tax $2,988,474.13 

Railroad Tax 483,287.62 

Rent Western and Atlantic R. R 420,012.00 

Poll Tax 296,148.48 

Near Beer Licenses 248,855.00 

Insurance Tax 152,040.64 

Miscellaneous 969,628.49 

$5>558,446.36 

This total includes a temporary loan of $200,000. 
More than half of the revenue was raised by a gen- 
eral tax on all real and personal property. 



1 



GOVERNORS OF GEORGIA 



COLONIAL: 

James E. Oglethorpe 1732 

William Stephens 1743 

Henry Parker 175 1 

Patrick Graham (Acting) .1753 

PROVINCIAL: 

John Reynolds 1754 

Henry Ellis 1757 

James Wright 1760 

PROVISIONAL: 

Archibald Bulloch, Presi- 
dent 1776 

Button Gwinnett, Presi- 
dent 1777 

STATE: 

John A. Treutlen 1777 

John Houston 1778 

John Wereat 1778 

George Walton (Acting) . .1779 

Richard Howley 1780 

George Wells (Acting) ... .1780 
Stephen Heard (Acting) . . .1781 

Nathan Brownson 1781 

John Martin 1782 

Lyman Hall 1783 

John Houston 1784 

Samuel Elbert 1785 

Edward Telfair 1786 

George Matthews 1787 

George Handly 1788 

George Walton 1789 

Edward Telfair 1790 

George Matthews 1793 

Jared Irwin 1796 

James J.^ckson 1798 

David Emanuel 1801 

JosiAH Tatnall 1801 

John Milledge 1802 

Jared Irwin 1806 



David B. Mitchell 

Peter Early 

David B. Mitchell 

William Rabun 

Matthew Talbot, President 

of Senate 

John Clark 

George M. Troup 

Joh n Forsyth 

George R. Gilmer 

Wilson Lumpkin 

William Schley 

George R. Gilmer 

Charles J. McDonald 

George W. Crawford 

George W. Towns 

Howell Cobb 

Herschel V. Johnson 

Joseph E. Brown 

James Johnson, Provisional 

Governor 

Charles J. Jenkins 

RuFus B. Bullock 

Benjamin Conley, Acting. . 

James M. Smith 

Alfred H. Colquitt 

Alexander H. Stephens.... 
James S. Boynton, President 

of Senate 

Henry D. McDaniel 

John B. Gordon 

W. J. Northen 

W. Y. Atkinson 

A. D, Candler 

Joseph M. Terrell 

Hoke Smith 

Jos. M. Brown 

Hoke Smith 

John M. Slaton, President 

of Senate 

Jos. M. Brown 

John M. Slaton 



397 



398 



LIST OF COUNTIES 



Showing their Names, for whom named, the County Seat, when laid out, and 

Population, 1910. 



Nai 



AppHng 

Baker 

Baldwin 

Banks 

Bartow 

Ben Hill 

Berrien 

Bibb 

Bleckley 

Brooks 

Bryan 

Bulloch 

Burke 

Butts 

Calhoun 

Camden 

Campbell 

Carroll 

Catoosa 

Charlton 

Chatham 

Chattahoochee 
Chattooga. . . . 

Cherokee 

Clarke 

Clay 

Clayton 

Clinch 

Cobb 

Coffee 

Colquitt 

Columbia 

Coweta 

Cra-^ford 

Crisp 

Dade 

Dawson 

Decatur 

Dekalb 

Dodge 

Dooly •. . 

Dougherty. . . . 

Douglas 

Early 

Echols 

Effingham. . . . 

Elbert 

Emanuel 



For JVhom. 



Col. Dan'I Appling 

Col. John Baker 

Abraham Baldwin 

Dr. Richard Banks 

Gen. Francis S. Bartow. . . 

Benj. H.Hill. 

John M. Berrien 

Dr. W. W. Bibb 

Logan E. Bleckley 

Preston L. Brooks 

Jonathan Bryan 

Archibald Bulloch 

Edmund Burke 

Captain Sam. Butts 

John C. Calhoun 

Earl of Camden 

Duncan G. Campbell 

Charles Carroll 

Catoosa 

R.M.Charlton 

Earl of Chatham 

Chattahoochee River 

Chattooga River 

Cherokee Indians 

Gen. Elijah Clarke 

Henry Clay 

A. S. Clayton 

Gen. Duncan S. Clinch. . . 

John Cobb 

Gen. John Coffee 

Walter T. Colquitt 

Christopher Columbus.. . . 

Chief of Cowetas 

Wm. H. Crawford 

Charles F. Crisp 

Maj. Francis Dade 

Wm. C. Dawson 

Stephen Decatur 

Baron De Kalb 

Wm. E. Dodge 

Col. John Dooly 

Charles Dougherty 

Stephen A. Douglas 

Gov. Peter Early 

Robert M. Echols 

Lord Effingham 

Gov. Sam. Elbert 

Gov. David Emanuel . . . . 



County Seat. 



Baxley 

Newton 

Milledgeville 

Homer 

Cartersville. 
Fitzgerald. . . 
Nashville. . . 

Macon 

Cochran. . . . 

Quitman . . . . 

Clyde... ... 

Statesboro. . 
Waynesboro. 
Jackson .... 

Morgan .... 

St. Marys. . . 
Fairburn. . . . 

Carrollton . . 
Ringgold . . . 
Folkston. . . . 

Savannah. . . 

Cusseta 

Summerville 

Canton 

Athens 

Fort Gaines. 
Jonesboro. . . 
Homerville. . 

Marietta 

Douglas . . . . 
Moultrie. . . . 

Appling 

Newnan .... 
Knoxville. . . 

Cordele 

Trenton . . . . 
Dawsonville. 
Bainbridge. . 
Decatur. . . . 
Eastman. . . . 

Vienna 

Albany 

Douglasville. 
Blakely..... 
Statenville. . 
Springfield . . 
Elberton. . . . 
Swainsboro.. 



Laid 
out. 



825 
803 
858 
861 
907 
856 
822 
912 
858 

793 
796 

777 
825 

854 
777 
828 
826 
853 
854 
777 
854 
838 
832 
801 

854 
858 
850 
832 

854 
856 

790 

826 
822 
905 
837 
857 
823 
822 
870 
821 

853 
870 
818 
858 

777 
790 
812 



Popula- 
tion. 



12,318 

7.973 
18,354 
11,244 
25,388 
11,863 
22,772 
56,646 

23.832 
6,702 
26,464 
27,268 
13,624 

11.334 

7,690 

10,874 

30,855 

7,184 

4,722 

79,690 

5.586 

13,608 

16,661 

23.273 
8,960 

10.453 
8,424 

28,397 
21.953 
19,789 
12,328 
28,800 
8,310 
16,423 

4.139 
4,686 

29.045 
27,881 
20,127 

20,554 
16,035 

8,953 
18,122 

3.309 

9.971 

24,125 

25,140 



LIST OF COUNTIES— Continued 



399 



Name. 

Fannin 

Fayette 

Floyd 

Forsyth 

Franklin. . . . 

Fulton 

Gilmer 

Glascock. . . . 

Glynn 

Gordon 

Grady 

Greene 

Gwinnett. . . . 
Habersham. . 

Hall 

Hancock. . . . 
Haralson. . . . 

Harris 

Hart 

Heard 

Henry 

Houston 

Irwin 

Jackson 

Jasper 

JefF Davis. . . , 

Jefferson 

Jenkins 

Johnson 

Jones 

Laurens 

Lee 

Liberty 

Lincoln 

Lowndes 

Lumpkin 

McDuffie 

Mcintosh. . . , 

Macon 

Madison. ... 

Marion 

Meriwether. . 

Miller 

Milton 

Mitchell 

Monroe 

Montgomery. 

Morgan 

Murray 

Muscogee. . . 



For IF horn. 



Col. J. W. Fannin 

Gen. Lafayette 

Gen. Floyd 

Gov. John Forsyth 

Benjamin Franklin 

Robert Fulton 

Gov. Geo. R. Gilmer. . . 
Gen. Thos. Glascock. . . 

John Glynn 

Wm. W. Gordon 

Henry W. Grady 

Gen. Nat. Greene 

Gov. Button Gwinnett. . 

Joseph Habersham 

Gov. Lyman Hall 

John Hancock 

Hugh A, Haralson 

Charles Harris 

Nancy Hart 

Stephen Heard 

Patrick Henry 

Gov. John Houston .... 

Gov. Jared Irwin 

Gov. Jas. Jackson 

Sergeant Jasper 

Jefferson Davis 

Thomas Jefferson 

Gov. Chas. J. Jenkins. . 

Gov. H. V. Johnson 

Hon. James Jones 

Col. John Laurens 

Richard H. Lee 

See page 127 

Gen. Benj. Lincoln 

Wm. J. Lowndes 

Gov. Wilson Lumpkin. . . 

Geo. McDuffie. 

Mcintosh Family 

Nath. Macon 

Jas. Madison 

Gen. Francis Marion. . . . 
Gen. David Meriwether. 

Andrew J. Miller 

Homer V. Milton 

Gov. David B. Mitchell. 

Jas. Monroe 

Gen. Rich. Montgomery. 

Gen. Dan'l Morgan 

Thos. W. Murray 

Muscogee Indians 



County Seat. 



Blue Ridge.. . 
Fayetteville. . 

Rome 

Cumming. . . . 
Carnesville. . . 

Atlanta 

EUijay 

Gibson 

Brunswick. . . 

Calhoun 

Cairo 

Greensboro. . 
Lawrenceville, 
Clarkesville. . 
Gainesville. . . 

Sparta 

Buchanan. . . . 
Hamilton. . . . 

Hartwell 

Franklin 

McDonough.. 

Perry 

Ocilla 

Jefferson 

Monticello. . . 
Hazlehurst. . . 
Louisville. . . . 

Millen 

Wrightsville. . 

Gray 

Dublin 

Leesburg. . . . 
Hinesville. . . . 
Lincolnton. . . 

Valdosta 

Dahlonega. . . 
Thomson. . . . 

Darien 

Olgethorpe. . . 
Danielsville. . 
Buena Vista. . 
Greenville. . . . 

Colquitt 

Alpharetta. . . 

Camilla 

Forsyth 

Mt. Vernon. . 

Madison 

Spring Place . 
Columbus. . . . 



Laid 
out. 



854 
821 

832 

832 

786 

853 
832 

857 

777 
850 

90s 
786 
818 
818 
818 

793 

856 
827 

853 
830 
821 
821 
818 
796 
812 

905 
796 

905 
858 
807 
807 
826 

777 
796 
825 
838 
871 
793 
837 
811 
827 
827 
856 
857 
857 
821 

793 
807 
832 
826 



Popula- 
tion. 

12,574 
10,966 

36,736 
11,940 

17,894 

177,733 

9>237 

4,669 

15,720 

15,861 

18,457 
18,512 
28,824 

10,134 
25,730 
19,189 

13,514 

17,886 
16,216 
1 1 , 1 80 
19,927 
23,609 
10,461 
30,169 

16,552 
6,050 

21,379 
11,520 
12,897 
13,103 
35,501 
11,679 
12,924 
8,714 
24,436 

5,444 

10,325 

6,442 

15,016 

16,851 

9,147 

25,180 
7,986 

7,239 
22,114 

20,450 
19,638 
19,717 
9,763 
36,227 



400 



LIST OF COVNTIES— Continued 



Name. 

Newton . . . . 

Oconee 

Oglethorpe. 
Paulding. . . 
Pickens. . . . 

Pierce 

Pike 

Polk.. 

Pulaski 

Putnam. . . . 
Quitman. . . 

Rabun 

Randolph . . 
Richmond . . 
Rockdale. . . 

Schley 

Screven. . . . 
Spalding. , . 
Stephens. . . 
Stewart. . . . 

Sumter 

Talbot 

Taliaferro. . 
Tattnall . . . 

Taylor 

Telfair 

Terrell 

Thomas. . . . 

Tift 

Toombs , . . . 

Towns 

Troup 

Turner 

Twiggs 

Union 

Upson 

Walker 

Walton 

Ware 

Warren . . . . 
Washington 

Wayne 

Webster. . . . 
Wheeler. . . . 

White 

Whitfield.., 

Wilcox 

Wilkes 

Wilkinson. . 
Worth 



For Whom. 



Sergeant John Newton. 

Oconee River 

Gen. Jas. E. Oglethorpe 

John Paulding 

Gen. Andrew Pickens.. . 

Franklin Pierce 

ZebulonM. Pike 

Jas. K. Polk. 

Count Pulaski 

Israel Putnam 

Gen. John A. Quitman . 

Gov. Wm. Rabun 

John Randolph 

Duke of Richmond 

"Rockdale Church". . . . 

Gov. Wm. Schley 

Gen. Jas. Screven 

Hon. Thos, Spalding. . . 
Gov. Alex. H. Stephens. 
Gen. Dan'l Stewart. . . . 

Gen. Thos. Sumter 

Gov. Matthew Talbot. . 
Col. Benj. Taliaferro. . . 

Josiah Tattnall 

Zach. Taylor 

Gov. Edward Telfair. . . 

Dr. Wm. Terrell 

Gen. Jett Thomas 

Nelson Tift 

Gen. Robert Toombs. . . 
Gov. Geo. N. Towns . . . 
Gov. Geo. M. Troup. . . 

Henry G. Turner 

Gen. John Twiggs 

Union 

Stephen Upson 

Maj. Freeman Walker. . 

Gov. Geo. Walton 

Nicholas Ware 

Gen. Joseph Warren . . . 
George Washington . . . . 
Gen. Anthony Wayne. . 

Daniel Webster 

Gen. Jos. E. Wheeler. . . 

Col. John White 

Rev. Geo. Whitefield. . . 
Captain John Wilcox. . . 

John Wilkes 

Gen. Tas. Wilkinson. . . . 
Gen. Wm. I.Worth.... 



County Seat. 




Papula" 
tion. 



Covmgton . , 
Watkinsville. 
Lexington. . . 

Dallas 

Jasper 

Blackshear. . 

Zebulon 

Cedartown. . . 
Hawkinsville. 
Eatonton . . . . 
Georgetown. . 

Clayton 

Cuthbert . . . . 

Augusta 

Conyers 

Ellaville 

Sylvania 

Griffin 

Toccoa 

Lumpkin . . . . 
Americus . . . . 
Talbotton. . . . 
Crawfordville 
Reidsville. . . . 

Butler 

McRae 

Dawson 

Thomasville. . 

Tifton 

Lyons 

Hiawassee. . . 
LaGrange . . . 

Ashburn 

JefFersonville. 
Blairsviile. . . . 
Thomaston . . 
La Fayette. . . 

Monroe 

Waycross. . . . 
Warrenton. . 
Sandersville. . 

Jesup 

Preston 

Alamo 

Cleveland. . . . 

Dalton 

Abbeville. . . . 
Washington. . 

Irwinton 

Sylvester. . . . 



821 
875 
793 

832 

853 
857 
822 
851 
808 
807 
858 
819 
828 

777 
870 

857 
793 
851 

905 

830 

831 
827 
82s 
801 
852 
807 
856 
825 
905 
90s 
856 
826 

90s 
809 
832 
824 

833 
818 
824 
793 
784 
80s 
8s6 
Q12 

857 
8si 
857 
777 
803 

853 



CONSTITUTION OF THE STATE OF 

GEORGIA 



PREAMBLE. 

To perpetuate the principles of free government, insure justice to all, 
preserve peace, promote the interest and happiness of the citizen, and 
transmit to posterity the enjoyment of liberty, we, the people of Georgia, 
relying upon the protection and guidance of Almighty God, do ordain sind 
establish this Constitution. 

ARTICLE L 

BILL OF RIGHTS. 

Section I. Rights of the Citizen. 

1. Origin and Foundation of Government. — All government of right 
originates with the people, is founded upon their will only, and is insti- 
tuted solely for the good of the whole. Public officers are the trustees 
and servants of the people, and at all times amenable to them. 

2. Protection the Duty of Government. — Protection to person and 
property is the paramount duty of government, and shall be impartial 
and complete. 

3. Life, Liberty and Property.— No person shall be deprived of life, 
liberty, or property, except by due process of law. 

4. Right to the Courts. — No person shall be deprived of the right to 
prosecute or defend his own cause, in any of the courts of this State, in 
person, by attorney, or both, 

5. Benefit of Counsel, Accusation, List of Witnesses, Compulsory 
Process and Trial. — Every person charged with an offense against the 
laws of this State shall have the privilege and benefit of counsel; shall 
be furnished, on demand, with a copy of the accusation, and a list of the 
witnesses on whose testimony the charge against him is founded; shall 
have compulsory process to obtain the testimony of his own witnesses; 
shall be confronted with the witnesses testifying against him, and shall 
have a public and speedy trial by an impartial jury. 

6. Crimination of Self not Compelled. — No person shall be com- 
pelled to give testimony tending in any manner to criminate himself. 

7. Banishment; Whipping. — Neither banishment beyond the limits of 
the State, nor whipping, as a punishment for crime, shall be allowed. 

8. Jeopardy of Life, etc.. More than Once, Forbidden, — No person 
shall be put in jeopardy of life, or liberty, more than once for the same 

401 



402 History of Georgia 

offense, save on his, or her, own motion for a new trial after conviction, 
or in case of mistrial. 

9. Bail, Fines, Punishments, Arrests. — Excessive bail shall not be 
required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments 
inflicted; nor shall any person be abused in being arrested, while under 
arrest, or in prison. 

10. Costs. — No person shall be compelled to pay costs> except after 
conviction on final trial. 

11. Habeas Corpus. — The writ of habeas corpus shall not be sus- 
pended. 

12. Freedom of Conscience. — All men have the natural and inalien- 
able right to worship God, each according to the dictates of his own 
conscience, and no human authority should, in any case, control or inter- 
fere with such right of conscience. 

13. Religious Opinions, etc. — No inhabitant of this State shall be 
molested in person or property, or prohibited from holding any public 
office or trust, on account of his religious opinions; but the right of lib- 
erty of conscience shall not be so construed as to excuse acts of licen- 
tiousness, or justify practices inconsistent with the peace and safety of 
the State. 

14. Appropriations to Sects Forbidden, — No money shall ever be 
taken from the public treasury, directly or indirectly, in aid of any church, 
sect, or denomination of religionists, or of any sectarian institution. 

15. Liberty of Speech Guaranteed. — No law shall ever be passed 
to curtail, or restrain, the liberty of speech, or of the press; any person 
may speak, write, and publish his sentiments, on all subjects, being re- 
sponsible for the abuse of that liberty. 

16. Searches and Warrants. — The right of the people to be secure in 
their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches 
and seizures shall not be violated; and no warrant shall issue except 
upon probable cause, supported by oath, or affirmation, particularly 
describing the place, or places, to be searched, and the persons or things 
to be seized. 

17. Slavery. — There shall be within the State of Georgia neither 
slavery nor involuntary servitude, save as a punishment for crime after 
legal conviction thereof. 

18. Status of the Citizen. — The social status of the citizen shall 
never be the subject of legislation. 

19. Civil Authority Superior to Military. — The civil authority shall 
be superior to the military, and no soldier shall, in time of peace, be 
quartered in any house without the consent of the owner, nor in time of 
war, except by the civil magistrate, in such manner as may be provided 
by law. 

20. Contempts. — The power of the courts to punish for contempts 
shall be limited by legislative acts. 

21. Imprisonment for Debt. — There shall be no imprisonment for debt. 



History of Georgia 403 

22. Arms. — The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not 
be infringed, but the General Assembly shall have power :o prescribe the 
manner in which arms may be borne. 

23. Legislative, Judicial, and Executive Separate. — The legislative, 
judicial, and executive powers shall forever remain separate and distinct, 
and no person discharging the duties of one shall at the same time exer- 
cise the functions of either of the others, except as herein provided. 

24. Right to Assemble and Petition. — The people have the right to 
assemble peaceably for their common good, and to apply to those vested 
with the powers of government for redress of grievances, by petition or 
remonstrance. 

25. Citizens, Protection of. — All citizens of the United States resi- 
dent in this State are hereby declared citizens of this State; and it shall 
be the duty of the General Assembly to enact such laws as will protect 
them in the full enjoyment of the rights, privileges, and immunities due 
to such citizenship. 

Section II. Certain Offenses Defined. 

1. Libel; Jury in Criminal Trials. — In all prosecutions or indict- 
ments for libel, the truth may be given in evidence; and the jury in all 
criminal cases shall be the judges of the law and the facts. The power 
of the judges to grant new trials in case of conviction is preserved. 

2. Treason. — Treason against the State of Georgia shall consist in 
levying war against her, adhering to her enemies, giving them aid and 
comfort. No person shall be convicted of treason, except on the testimony 
of two witnesses to the same overt act,' or confession in open court. 

3. Conviction. — No conviction shall work corruption of blood, or 
forfeiture of estate. 

4. Lotteries. — All lotteries, and the sale of lottery tickets, are hereby 
prohibited; and this prohibition shall be enforced by penal laws. 

5. Lobbying. — Lobbying is declared to be a crime, and the General 
Assembly shall enforce this provision by suitable penalties. 

6. Fraud; Property Concealment. — The General Assembly shall 
have the power to provide for the punishment of fraud; and shall pro- 
vide, by law, for reaching property of the debtor concealed from the 
creditor. 

Section III. Protection to Person and Property. 

1. Private Ways; Just Compensation. — In cases of necessity, private 
ways may be granted upon just compensation being first paid by the 
applicant. Private property shall not be taken, or damaged, for public 
purposes, without just and adequate compensation being first paid. 

2. Attainder; ex Post Facto and Retroactive Laws, etc. — No bill 
of attainder, ex post facto law, retroactive law, or law impairing the 
obligation of contracts, or making irrevocable grants of special privileges 
or immunities, shall be passed. 



404 History of Georgia 

3. Revocation of Grants. — No grant of special privileges or immuni- 
ties shall be revoked, except in such manner as to work no injustice to 
the corporators or creditors of the incorporation. 

Section IV. Special Legislation Forbidden. 

1. General Laws, and How Varied. — Laws of a gcKeral nature shall 
have uniform operation throughout the State, and no special law shall be 
enacted in any case for which provision has been made by an existing 
general law. No general law affecting private rights shall be varied in 
any particular case, by special legislation, except with the free consent, in 
writing, of all persons to be affected thereby; and no person under legal 
disability to contract is capable of such consent. 

2. What Acts Void. — Legislative acts in violation of this Constitution, 
or the Constitution of the United States, are void, and the judiciary shall 
so declare them. 

Section V. Governmental Rights of the People. 

1. State Rights. — The people of this State have the inherent, sole, and 
exclusive right of regulating their internal government, and the police 
thereof, and of altering and abolishing their Constitution, whenever it 
may be necessary to their safety and happiness. 

2. Enumeration of Rights Not Deny Others. — The enumeration of 
rights herein contained as a part of this Constitution shall not be con- 
strued to den> to the people any inherent right which they may have 
hitherto enjoyed. 

ARTICLE II. 
ELECTIVE FRANCHISE. 

Section I. Qualification of Voters. (Amendment of 1908,) 

1. Elections by Ballot, and Voters Must be Registered. — After the 
year 1908 elections by the people shall be by ballot, and only those persons 
shall be allowed to vote who have been first registered \\ accordance with 
the requirements of law. 

2. Who Shall be an Elector Entitled to Register and Vote.^ — Every 
male citizen of this State who is a citizen of the United States, twenty- 
ane years old or upwards, not laboring under any of the disabilities named 
in this Article, and possessing the qualifications provided by it, shall be 
an elector and entitled to register and vote at any election by the people: 
Provided, thai; no soldier, sailor, or marine in the military or naval 
service of the United States shall acquire the rights of an elector by 
reason of being stationed on duty in this State. 

3. Who Entitled to Register and Vote. — To entitle a person to 
register and vote at any election by the people, he shall have resided in 
the State one year next preceding the election, and in the county in which 
iie offers to vcte six months next preceding the election, and shall have 



History of Georgia 405 

paid all taxes which may have been required of him since the adoption of 
the Constitution of Georgia of 1877 that he may have had an opportunity 
of p«aying agreeably to law. Such payment must have been made at least 
six months prior to the election at which he offers to vote, except when 
such elections are held within six months from the expiration of the time 
fixed by law for the payment of such taxes. 

4. Qualifications of Elector. — Every male citizen of this State shall 
be entitled to register as an elector, and to vote in all elections in said 
State, who is not disqualified under the provisions of Section 2 of Article 
2 of this Constitution, and who possesses the qualifications described in 
paragraphs 2 and 3 of this Section, or who will possess them at the date 
of the election occurring next after his registration, and who in addition 
thereto comes within either of the classes provided for In the five follow- 
ing subdivisions of this paragraph. 

(i) All persons who have honorably served in the land or naval 
forces of the United States in the Revolutionary War, or in the War of 
1812, or in the War with Mexico, or in any war with the Indians, or in 
the War between the States, or in the War with Spain, or who honorably 
served in the land or naval forces of the Confederate States or of the 
State of Georgia in the War between the States ; or, 

(2) All persons lawfully descended from those embraced in the classes 
enumerated in the subdivision next above; or, 

(3) All persons who are of good character and understand the duties 
and obligations of citizenship under a republican form of government; or, 

(4) All persons who can correctly read in the English language any 
paragraph of the Constitution of the United States or of this State and 
correctly write the same in the English language when read to them by 
any one of the registrars, and all persons who solely because of physical 
disability are unable to comply with the above requirements, but who can 
understand and give a reasonable interpretation of any paragraph of the 
Constitution of the United States or of this State that may be read to them 
by any one of the registrars; or, 

(5) Any person who is the owner in good faith in his own right of at 
least forty acres of land situated in this State, upon which he resides, or 
is the owner in good faith in his own right of property situated in this 
State and assessed for taxation at a value of $500.00. 

5. Registrars Shall Prepare Roster. — The right to register under 
subdivisions i and 2 of paragraph 4 shall continue only until January ist, 
1915. But the registrars shall prepare a roster of all persons who register 
under subdivisions i and 2 of paragraph 4, and shall return the same to 
the clerk's office of the superior court of their counties, and the clerks of 
the superior court shall send copies of the same to the Secretary of State, 
and it shall be the duty of these officers to record and permanently pre- 
serve these rosters. Any person who has been once registered under 
either of the subdivisions 1 or 2 of paragraph 4 shall thereafter be per- 



406 History of Georgia 

mitted to vote: Provided, he meets tlie requirements of paragraphs 2 and 
3 of this Section. 

6. Appeal from Decision of Registrars. — Any person to whom the 
right of registration is denied by the registrars upon the ground 
that he lacks the qualifications set forth in the five subdivisions of para- 
graph 4 shall have the right to take an appeal, and any citizen may enter 
an appeal from the decision of the registrars allowing any person to 
register under said subdivisions. All appeals must be filed in writing 
with the registrars within ten days from the date of the decision com- 
plained of, and shall be returned by the registrars to the office of the 
clerk of the superior court to be tried as other appeals, 

7. Judgment of Force Pending Appeal.— Pending an appeal and 
until the final decision of the case, the judgment of the registrars shall 
remain in full force. 

8. Only Qualified Voter Can Participate in Primary. — No person 
shall be allowed to participate in a primary of any political party or a 
convention of any political party in this State who is not a qualified 
voter. 

9. Machinery for Registration. — The machinery provided by law 
for the registration of force October ist, 1908, shall be used to carry out 
the provisions of this Section, except when inconsistent with same ; the 
legislature may change or amend the registration laws from time to time, 
but no such change or amendment shall operate to defeat any of the pro- 
visions of this Section. 

Section II. Registration. 
1. Registration ; Who Disfranchised. — The General Assembly may 
provide, from time to time, for the registration of all electors, but the 
following classes of persons shall not be permitted to register, vote or 
hold any office, or appointment of honor or trust m this State, to-wit: 
(i) Those who shall have been convicted, in any court of competent 
jurisdiction, of treason against the State, of embezzlement of public funds, 
malfeasance in office, bribery, or larceny, or of any crime involving 
moral turpitude, punishable by the laws of this State with imprisonment 
in the penitentiary, unless such person shall have been pardoneci. (2) 
Idiots and insane persons. 

Section III. Voters' Privilege. 
I. Privilege of Electors. — Electors shall, in all cases, except for 
treason, felony, larceny and breach of the peace, be privileged from 
arrest during their attendance on elections, and in going to and returning 
from the same. 

Section IV. Disqualification to Hold Office. 
I. Holder of Public Funds. — No person who is the holder of any 



History of Georgia 407 

public money, contrary to law, shall be eligible to any office in this State 
until the same is accounted for and paid into the treasury. 

2. Duelling. — No person who, after the adoption of this Constitution, 
being a resident of this State, shall have been convicted of fighting a 
duel in this State, or convicted of sending or accepting a challenge, or 
convicted of aiding or abetting such duel, shall hold office in this State, 
unless he shall have been pardoned; and every such person shall also 
be subject to such punishment as may be prescribed by law. 

Section V. Sale of Liquors^ When Forbidden. 

1. Sale of Liquors on Election Days. — The General Assembly shall, 

by law, forbid the sale, distribution, or furnishing of intoxicating drinks 

within two miles of election precincts on days of election — State, county 

or municipal — and prescribe punishment for any violation of the same. 

Section VI. Returns of Elections. 
I. Election Returns. — Returns of election for all civil officers elected 
by the people, who are to be commissioned by the Governor, and also for 
the members of the General Assembly, shall be made to the Secretary of 
State, unless otherwise provided by law. 

ARTICLE III. 

LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT. 

Section I. Legislative Power, Where Vested. 

I. Legislative Power. — The legislative power of the State shall be 

vested in a General Assembly, which shall consist of a Senate and House 

of Representatives. 

Section II. Senatorial Districts. 

1. Number of Senators, etc. — The Senate shall consist of forty-four 
members. There shall be forty-four Senatorial districts, as now arranged 
by counties. Each district shall have one Senator. 

2. Districts Changed, How. — The General Assembly may change 
these districts after each census of the United States: Provided, that 
neither the number of districts nor the number of senators from each 
district shall be increased. 

Section III. County Representation. 
I. Number of Representatives, — The House of Representatives shall 
consist of one hundred and eighty-four representatives, apportioned 
among the several counties as follows, to-wit: (The apportionment was 
changed by the General Assembly in 1911 to the following: To the six 
counties having the largest population, viz: Fulton, Chatham, Richmond, 
Bibb, Floyd, and Muscogee, three representatives each; to the twenty-six 



408 History of Georgia 

counties having the next largest population, viz: Laurens, Carroll, Jack- 
son, Sumter, Thomas, Decatur, Gwinnett, Coweta, Cobb, Washington, 
DeKalb, Burke, Bulloch, Troup, Hall, Walton, Bartow, Meriwether, 
Emanuel, Lowndes, Elbert, Brooks, Houston, Wilkes, Clarke, and Ware, 
two representatives each; and to the remaining one hundred and four- 
teen counties, one representative each. In 1912 two new counties, 
Wheeler and Bleckley, were created.) 

2. Changed, How. — The above apportionment shall be changed by 
the General Assembly at its first session after each census taken by the 
United States Government, so as to give the six counties having the 
largest population three representatives, each; and to the twenty-six 
counties having the next largest population two representatives, each; 
but in no event shall the aggregate number of representatives be in- 
creased. 

Section IV. The General Assembly. 

1. Term of Members. — The members of the General Assembly shall 
be elected for two years, and shall serve until their successors are elected. 

2. Election,. When. — The first election for members of the General 
Assembly, under this Constitution, shall take place on the first Wednesday 
in December, 1877; the second election for the same shall be held on the 
first Wednesday in October, 1880, and subsequent elections biennially on 
that day, until the day of election is changed by law. 

3. Meeting of the General Assembly. — ^The first meeting of the 
General Assembly, after the ratification of this Constitution, shall be on 
the fourth Wednesday in October, 1878, and annually thereafter, on the 
same day, until the day shall be changed by law. No session of the 
General Assembly shall continue longer than fifty days: Provided, that 
if an impeachment trial is impending at the end of fifty days, the session 
may be prolonged till the completion of said trial. (Prior to amend- 
mends adopted in 1892 the Legislature met biennially for forty days. 
Legislature now meets fourth Wednesday in June.) 

4. Quorum. — A majority of each house shall constitute a quorum to 
transact business; but a smaller number may adjourn from day to day 
and compel the presence of its absent members, as each house may pro- 
vide. 

5. Oath of Members. — Each senator and representative, before taking 
his seat, shall take the following oath, or affirmation, to-wit: "I will 
support the Constitution of this State, and of the United States; and on 
all questions and measures which may come before me, I will so conduct 
myself as will, in my judgment, be most conducive to the interests and 
prosperity of this State." 

6. Length of Sessions. — (Repealed.) 

7. Eligibility; Appointments Forbidden. — No person holding a mili- 
tary commission, or other appointment or office, having any emolument 



History of Georgia 409 

or compensation annexed thereto, under this State, or the United States, 
or either of them, except justices of the peace and officers of the militia, 
nor any defaulter for public money, or for any legal taxes required of 
him, shall have a seat in either house, nor shall any senator or repre- 
sentative, after his qualification as such, be elected by the General As- 
sembly, or appointed by the Governor, either with or without the advice 
and consent of the Senate, to any office or appointment having any emol- 
ument annexed thereto, during the time for which he shall have been 
elected. 

8. Removal Vacates. — The seat of a member of either house shall be 
vacated on his removal from the district or county from which he was 
elected. 

Section V. The Senate, 

1. Qualifications of Senators. — The Senators shall be citizens of 
the United States who have attained the age of twenty-five years, and 
who shall have been citizens of this State for four years, and for one 
year residents of the district from which elected. 

2. President. — The presiding officer of the Senate shall be styled the 
President of the Senate, and he shall be elected viva voce from the Sen- 
ators. 

3. Impeachments. — The Senate shall have the sole power to try im- 
peachments, 

4. Trial of Impeachments. — When sitting for that purpose, the mem- 
bers shall be on oath or affirmation, and shall be presided over by the 
Chief Justice, or the presiding justice of the Supreme Court. Should the 
Chief Justice be disqualified, the Senate shall select the judge of the 
Supreme Court to preside. No person shall be convicted without the 
concurrence of two-thirds of the members present. 

5. Judgments in Impeachments. — Judgments, in cases of impeach- 
ment, shall not extend further than removal from office and disqualifica- 
tion to hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust, or profit, within this 
State; but the party convicted shall, nevertheless, be liable and subject 
to indictment, trial, judgment and punishment, according to law. 

Section VI. The House of Representatives, 

1. Qualifications of Representatives. — The representatives shall 
be citizens of the United States who have attained the age of twenty-one 
years, and who shall have been citizens of this State for two years, and 
for one year residents of the counties from which elected. 

2. Speaker. — The presiding officer of the House of Representatives 
shall be styled the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and shall be 
elected viva voce from the body. 

3. Power to Impeach. — 7'he House of Representatives shall have the 



410 History of Georgia 



1 



sole power to impeach all persons who shall have been, or may be, in 
office. 

Section VII. Enactment of Laws. 

1. Elections, Returns, etc. ; Disorderly Conduct. — Each house shall 
be the judge of the election, returns, and qualifications of its members 
and shall have power to punish them for disorderly behavior, or miscon- 
duct, by censure, fine, imprisonment, or expulsion, but no member shall be 
expelled, except by a vote of two-thirds of the house to which he belongs. 

2. Contempts, How Punished. — Each house may punish by imprison- 
ment, not extending beyond the session, any person, not a member, who 
shall be guilty of a contempt by any disorderly behavior in its presence, 
or who shall rescue, or attempt to rescue, any person arrested by order 
of either house. 

3. Privilege of Members. — The members of both houses shall be free 
from arrest during their attendance on the General Assembly, and in 
going thereto or returning therefrom, except for treason, felony, larceny, 
or breach of the peace; and no member shall be liable to answer in any 
other place for anything spoken in debate in either house. 

4. Journals. — Each house shall keep a journal of its proceedings, and 
publish it immediately after its adjournment. 

5. Where Kept. — The original journal shall be preserved, after pub- 
lication, in the office of the Secretary of State, but there shall be no other 
record thereof. 

6. Yeas and Nays, When Taken. — The yeas and nays on any ques- 
tion shall, at the desire of one-fifth of the members present, be entered 
on the journal. 

7. Bills to be Read. — Every bill, before it shall pass, shall be read 
three times, and on three separate days, in each house, unless in cases of 
actual invasion or insurrection; but the first and second reading of each 
local bill, and bank and railroad charters shall consist of the reading 
of the title only, unless said bill is ordered to be engrossed. 

8. One Subject-Matter Expressed. — No law or ordinance shall pass 
which refers to more than one subject-mater, or contains matter different 
from what is expressed in the title thereof. 

9. General Appropriation Bill. — The general appropriation bill 
shall embrace nothing except appropriations fixed by previous laws, the 
ordinary expenses of the executive, legislative, and judicial departments 
of the government, payment of the public debt and interest thereon, and 
the support of the public institutions and educational interests of the State. 
All other appropriations shall be made by separate bills, each embracing 
but one subject. 

10. BiLS FOR Revenue. — All bills for raising revenue, or appropriating 
money, shall originate in the House of Representatives, but the Senate 
may propose or concur in amendments, as in other bills. 



History of Georgia 411 

n. Public Money, How Drawn. — No money shall be drawn from the 
treasury except by appropriation made by law; and a regular statement 
and account of the receipt and expenditure of all public money shall be 
published every three months, and, also, with the laws passed by each 
session of the General Assembly. 

12. Bills Appropriating Money. — No bill or resolution appropriating 
money shall become a law, unless, upon its passage, the yeas and nays, 
in each house, are recorded. 

13. Acts Signed; Rejected Bills. — All acts shall be signed by the 
President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, 
and no bill, ordinance, or resolution, intended to have the effect of a 
law, which shall have been rejected by either house, shall be again pro- 
posed during the same session, under the same or any other title, without 
the consent of two-thirds of the house by which the same was rejected. 

14. Majority of Members to Pass Bill. — No bill shall become a law 
unless it shall receive a majority of the votes of all the members elected 
to each house of the General Assembly, and it shall, in every instance, 
so appear on the journal. 

15. Local Bills. — (Stricken out by amendment.) 

16. Notice of Intention to Ask Local Legislation Necessary. — No 
local or special bill shall be passed, unless notice of the intention to apply 
therefor shall have been published in the locality where the matter, or 
thing to be affected, may be situated, which notice shall be given at least 
thirty days prior to the introduction of such bill into the General Assem- 
bly, and in the manner to be prescribed by law. The evidence of such 
notice, having been published, shall be exhibited in the General Assem- 
bly before such act shall be passed. 

17. Statutes and Sections of Code, How Amended. — No law, or sec- 
lion of the Code, shall be amended or repealed by mere reference to its 
fitle, or to the number of the section of the Code, but the amending or 
repealing act shall distinctly describe the law to be amended or repealed, 
as well as the alteration to be made. 

18. Corporate Powers, How Granted. — The General Assembly shall 
have no power to grant corporate powers and privileges to private com- 
panies ; to make or change election precincts; nor to establish bridges or 
ferries; nor to change names of legitimate children; but it shall pre- 
scribe by law the manner in which such powers shall be exercised by the 
courts; it may confer this authority to grant corporate powers and privi- 
leges to private companies to the judges of the superior courts of this 
State in vacation. All corporate powers and privileges to banking, in- 
surance, railroad, canal, navigation, express and telegraph companies 
shall be issued and granted by the secretary of State, in such manner as 
shall be prescribed by law; and if in any event the secretary of State 
should be disqualified to act in any case, then in that event the legisla- 



412 History of Georgia 

ture shall provide by general laws by what person such charters shall 
be granted. 

19. Recognizances. — The General Assembly shall have no power to 
relieve principals or securities upon forfeited recognizances, from the 
payment thereof, either before or after judgment thereon, unless the 
principal in the recognizance shall have been apprehended and placed in 
the custody of the proper officer. 

20. Street Railways. — The General Assembly shall not authorize the 
construction of any street passenger railway within the limits of any 
incorporated town or city, without the consent of the corporate authori- 
ties. 

21. Yeas and Nays to be Entered, When. — Whenever the Constitu- 
tion requires a vote of two-thirds of either or both houses for the passing 
of an act or resolution, the yeas and nays on the passage thereof shall be 
entered on the journal. 

22. Powers of the Legislature. — The General Assembly shall have 
power to make all laws and ordinances consistent with this Constitution, 
and not repugnant to the Constitution of the United States, which they 
shall deem necessary arfd proper for the welfare of the State. 

23. Signature of Governor. — No provision in this Constitution, 
for a two-thirds vote of both houses of the General Assembly, shall be 
construed to waive the necessity for the signature of the Governor, as in 
any other case, except in the case of the two-thirds vote required to over- 
ride the veto, and in case of prolongation of a session of the General 
Assembly. 

24. Adjournments. — Neither house shall adjourn for more than three 
days, or to any other place, without the consent of the other; and in case 
of disagreement between the two houses on a question of adjournment, 
the Governor may adjourn either or both of them. 

Section VIII. Officers of the General Assembly. 
I. Secretary and Clerk. — The officers of the two houses, other than 
the President and Speaker, shall be a secretary of the Senate, and clerk 
of the House of Representatives, and such assistants as they may appoint; 
but the clerical expenses of the Senate shall not exceed sixty dollars per 
day, for each session, nor those of the House of Representatives seventy 
dollars per day, for each session. The secretary of the Senate and clerk 
of the House of Representatives shall be required to give bond and 
security for the faithful discharge of their respective duties. 

Section IX. Pay of Members. 

I. Compensation. — The per diem of members of the General Assem- 
bly shall not exceed four dollars; and mileage shall not exceed ten cents 
for each mile travelled, by the nearest practicable route, in going to, and 
returning from, the capital ; but the President of the Senate and the 



History of Georgia 413 

Speaker of the House of Representatives shall each receive not exceeding 
seven dollars per day. 

Section X. Elections by General Assembly. 

I. Elections. — All elections by the General Assembly shall be viva 
voce, and the vote shall appear on the journal of the House of Repre- 
sentatives. When the Senate and House of Representatives unite for the 
purpose of elections, they shall meet in the Representative Hall, and the 
President of the Senate shall, in such cases, preside and declare the 
result. 

Section XI. Married Woman's Property. 

1. Wife's Estate. — All property of the wife at the time of her mar- 
riage, and all property given to, inherited, or acquired by her, shall 
remain her separate property, and not be liable for the debts of her 
husband. 

Section XH. Insurance Companies. 

1. Non-Resident Insurance Companies. — All life-insurance com- 
panies now doing business in this State, or which may desire to establish 
agencies and do business in the State of Georgia, chartered by other 
States of the Union, or foreign states, shall show that they have depos- 
ited with the comptroller-general of the State in which they are char- 
tered, or of this State, the insurance commissioners, or such other officer 
as may be authorized to receive it, not less than one hundred thousand 
dollars, in such securities as may be deemed by such officer equivalent to 
cash, subject to his order, as a guarantee fund for the security of policy 
holders. 

2. License by Comptroller. — When such showhig is made to the 
comptroller-general of the State of Georgia by a proper certificate from 
the State official having charge of the funds so deposited, the comptroller- 
general of the State of Georgia is authorized to issue, to the company 
making such showing, a license to do business in the State, upon paying 
the fees required by law. 

3. Resident Insurance Companies. — All life-insurance companies 
chartered by the State of Georgia, or which may hereafter be chartered 
by the State, shall, before doing business, deposit, with the comptroller- 
general of the State of Georgia, or with some strong corporation, which 
may be approved by said comptroller-general, one hundred thousand 
dollars, in such securities as may be deemed by him equivalent to cash, 
to be subject to his order, as a guarantee fund for the security of the 
policy holders of the company making such deposit, all interests and divi- 
dends arising from such securities to be paid, when due, to the company so 
depositing. Any such securities as may be needed or desired by the com- 
pany may be taken from said department at any time by replacing them 



414 History of Georgia 

with other securities equally acceptable to the comptroller-general, whose 
certificate for the same shall be furnished to the company. 

4. General Assembly to Enact Laws for People's Protection, etc. 
— The General Assembly shall, from time to time, enact laws to compel 
all fire-insurance companies doing business in this State, whether char- 
tered by this State or otherwise, to deposit reasonable securities with the 
treasurer of this State, to secure the people against loss by the operations 
of said companies. 

5. Reports by Insurance Companies, — The General Assembly shall 
compel all insurance companies in this State or doing business therein, 
under proper penalties, to make semi-annual reports to the Governor, 
and print the same at their own expense, for the information and pro- 
tection of the people. 

ARTICLE IV. 
POWER OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OVER TAXATION. 

Section I. Taxation. 

1. Taxation, a Sovereign Right. — The right of taxation is a sovereign 
right, inalienable, indestructible, is the life of the State, and rightfully 
belongs to the people in all republican governments, and neither the 
General Assembly, nor any nor all other departments of the government 
established by this Constitution, shall ever have the authority to irrevo- 
cably give, grant, limit, or restrain this right; and all laws, grants, con- 
tracts, and all other acts whatsoever, by said government, or any depart- 
ment thereof, io effect any of these purposes, shall be and are hereby 
declared to be null and void for every purpose whatsoever; and said 
right of taxation shall always be under the complete control of, and 
revocable by, the State, notwithstanding any gift, grant, or contract what- 
soever by the General Assembly. 

Section II. Regulation of Corporations. 

1. Railroad Tariffs. — The power and authority of regulating railroad 
freights and passenger tariffs, preventing unjust discriminations, and re- 
quiring reasonable and just rates of freight and passenger tariffs, are 
hereby conferred upon the General Assembly, whose duty it shall be to 
pass laws, from time to time, to regulate freight and passenger tariffs, 
to prohibit unjust discriminations on the various railroads of this State, 
and to prohibit said roads from charging other than just and reasonable 
rates, and enforce the same by adequate penalties. 

2. Right of Eminent Domain; Police Power. — The exercise of the 
right of eminent domain shall never be abridged, nor so construed as to 
prevent the General Assembly from taking the property and franchises 
of incorporated companies, and subjecting them to public use, the same 
as property of individuals; and the exercise of the police power of the 



History of Georgia 415 

State shall never be abridged, nor so construed as to permit corporations 
to conduct their business in such a manner as to infringe the equal rights 
of individuals, or the general well-being of the State. 

3. Charters Revived or Amended BecoxME Subject to this Constitu- 
tion. — The General Assembly shall not remit the forfeiture of the char- 
ter of any corporation, now existing, nor alter or amend the same, nor 
pass any other general or special law for the benefit of said corporation 
except upon the condition that such corporation shall thereafter hold its 
charter subject to the provisions of this Constitution; and every amend- 
ment of any charter of any corporation in this State, or any special law 
for its benefit, accepted thereby, shall operate as a novation of said char- 
ter, and shall bring the same under the provisions of this Constitution: 
Provided, that this section shall not extend to any amendment for the 
purpose of allowing any existing road to take stock in or aid in the 
building of any branch road. 

4. Buying Stock, etc., in Other Corporations; Competition. — The 
General Assembly of this State shall have no power to authorize any 
corporation to buy shares or stock in any other corporation in this State 
or elsewhere, or to make any contract, or agreement whatever, with any 
such corporation, which may have the effect, or be intended to have the 
effect, to defeat or lessen competition in their respective businesses, or to 
encourage monopoly; and all such contracts and agreements shall be 
illegal and void. 

5. Rebates. — No railroad company shall give, or pay, any rebate or 
bonus in the nature thereof, directly or indirectly, or do any act to mis- 
lead or deceive the public as to the real rates charged or received for 
freights or passage; and any such payments shall be illegal and void, 
and these prohibitions shall be enforced by suitable penalties. 

6. Obligation of Contracts Preserved. — No provision of this Article 
shall be deemed, held or taken to impair the obligation of any contract 
heretofore made by the State of Georgia, 

7. General Assembly to Enforce. — The General Assembly shall en- 
force the provisions of this Article by appropriate legislation. 

ARTICLE V. 
EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT. 

Section I. Governor. 

1. Executive Department, — The officers of the Executive Department 
shall consist of a Governor, secretary of State, comptroller-general and 
treasurer. 

2. Governor; Term of Office, Salary, etc. — The Executive power 
shall be vested in a Governor, who shall hold his office during the term 
of two years, and until his successor shall be chosen and qualified. He 



416 History of Georgia 

shall not be eligible to re-election, after the expiration of a second term, 
for the period of four years. He shall have a salary of five thousand 
dollars per annum (until otherwise provided by a law passed by a two- 
thirds vote of both branches of the General Assembly), which shall not 
be increased or diminished during the period for which he shall have 
been elected; nor shall he receive, within that time, any other emolu- 
ment from the United States, or either of them, or from any foreign 
power. 

3. Election for Governor. — The first election for Governor, under 
this Constitution, shall be held on the first Wednesday in October, 1880, 
and the Governor-elect shall be installed in office at the next session of 
the General Assembly. An election shall take place biennially there- 
after, on said day, until another date be fixed by the General Assembly. 
Said election shall be held at the places of holding general elections in 
the several counties of this State, in the manner prescribed for the elec- 
tion of members of the General Assembly, and the electors shall be the 
same. 

4. Returns of Elections. — The returns for every election of Governor 
shall be sealed up by the managers, separately from other returns, and 
directed to the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House of Rep- 
resentatives, and transmitted to the secretary of State, who shall, without 
opening said returns, cause the same to be laid before tne Senate on the 
day after the two houses shall have been organized, and they shall be 
transmitted by the Senate to the House of Representatives. 

5. How Published. — The members of each branch of the General 
Assembly shall convene in the Representative Hall, and the President of 
the Senate and Speaker of the House of Representatives shall open and 
publish the returns in the presence and under the direction of the Gen- 
eral Assembly; and the person having the majority of the whole number 
of votes shall be declared duly elected Governor of this State, but if no 
person shall have such majority, then from the two persons having the 
highest number of votes, who shall be in life, and shall not decline an 
election at the time appointed for the General Assembly to elect, the 
General Assembly shall, immediately, elect a Governor mva voce; and 
in all cases of election of a Governor by the General Assembly a major- 
ity of the members present shall be necessary to a choice. 

6. Contested Elections. — Contested elections shall be determined by 
both houses of the General Assembly in such manner as shall be pre- 
scribed by law. 

7. Qualifications of Governor. — No person shall be eligible to the 
office of Governor who shall not have been a citizen of the United States 
fifteen years, and a citizen of the State six years, and who shall not have 
attained the age of thirty years. 

'o. Death, Resignation, or Disability of Governor. — In case of the 
death, resignation, or disability of the Governor, the President of the 



History of Georgia 41? 

Senate shall exercise the executive powers of the government until such 
disability be removed, or a successor is elected and qualified. And in 
case of the death, resignation, or disability of the President of the Sen- 
ate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall exercise the execu- 
tive powers of the government until the removal of the disability, or the 
election and qualification of a Governor. 

9. Unexpired Terms. — The General Assembly shall have power to 
provide, by law, for filling unexpired terms by special elections. 

10. Oath of Office. — The Governor shall, before he enters on the 
duties of his office, take the following oath or affirmation: "I do solemnly 
swear (or affirm, as the case may be) that I will faithfully execute the 
office of Governor of the State of Georgia, and will, to the best of my 
ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution thereof, and the 
Constitution of the United States of America." 

11. Commander-in-chief. — The Governor shall be commander-in- 
chief of the army and navy of this State, and of the militia thereof. 

12. Reprieves and Pardons. — He shall have power to grant reprieves 
and pardons, to commute penalties, remove disabilities imposed by law, 
and to remit any part of a sentence for offenses against the State, after 
conviction, except in cases of treason and impeachment, subject to such 
regulations as may be provided by law relative to the manner of apply- 
ing for pardons. Upon conviction for treason he may suspend the exe- 
cution of the sentence and report the case to the General Assembly at 
the next meeting thereof, when the Genral Assembly shall either pardon, 
commute the sentence, direct its execution, or grant a further reprieve. 
He shall, at each session of the General Assembly, communicate to that 
body each case of reprieve, pardon or commutation granted, stating the 
name of the convict, the offense for which he was convicted, the sentence 
and its date, the date of the reprieve, pardon or commutation, and the 
reasons for granting the same. He shall take care that the laws are 
faithfully executed, and shall be a conservator of the peace throughout 
the State. 

13. Writs of Elections; Called Session of the Legislature. — He 
shall issue writs of election to fill all vacancies that may happen in the 
Senate or House of Representatives, and shall give the General Assem- 
bly, from time to time, information of the state of the Commonwealth, 
and recommend to their consideration such measures as he may deem 
necessary or expedient. He shall have power to convoke the General 
Assembly on extraordinary occasions, but no law shall be enacted at 
called sessions of the General Assembly except such as shall relate to 
the object stated in his proclamation convening them. 

14. Filling Vacancies. — When any office .shall become vacant, by 
death, resignation, or otherwise, the Governor shall have power to fill 
such vacancy, unless otherwise provided by law; and persons so ap- 
pointed shall continue in office until a successor is commissioned, agree- 



418 History of Georgia 

ably to the mode poin-ted out by this Constitution, or by law in pursuance 
thereof. 

15. Appointments Rejected. — A person once rejected by the Senate 
shall not be reappointed by the Governor to the same office during the 
same session, or the recess thereafter. 

16. Governor's Veto. — The Governor shall have the revision of all 
bills passed by the General Assembly, before the same shall become 
laws, but two-thirds of each house may pass a law notwithstanding his 
dissent; and if any bill should not be returned by the Governor within 
five days (Sunday excepted) after it has been presented to him, the same 
shall be a law, unless the General Assembly, by their adjournment, shall 
prevent its return. He may approve any appropriation, and disapprove 
any other appropriation, in the same bill, and the latter shall not be 
effectual unless passed by two-thirds of each house. 

17. Governor Must Approve.— Every vote, resolution, or order, to 
which the concurrence of both houses may be necessary, except on a 
question of election, or adjournment, shall be presented to the Governor, 
and, before it shall take effect, be approved by him, or, being disap- 
proved, shall be repassed by two-thirds of each house. 

18. Information from Department Officers; Treasurer and 
Comptroller. — He may require information, in writing, from the officers 
in the Executive Department on any subject relating to the duties of 
their respective offices. It shall be the duty of the Governor, quarterly, 
and oftener if he deems it expedient, to examine, under oath, the treasurer 
and comptroller-general of the State on all matters pertaining to their 
respective offices, and to inspect and review their books and accounts. 
The General Assembly shall have authority to provide by law for the 
suspension of either of said officers, from the discharge of the duties of 
his office, and also for the appointment of a suitable person to discharge 
the duties of the same. 

19. Secretaries. — The Governor shall have power to appoint his 
own secretaries not exceeding two in number, and to provide such other 
clerical force as may be required in his office, but the total cost for 
secretaries and clerical force in his office shall not exceed six thousand 
dollars per annum. 

Section II. Other Executive Officers. 

I. Secretary of State, Comptroller and Treasurer, How Elected. — 
The secretary of State, comptroller-general and treasurer shall be 
elected by persons qualified to vote for members of the General Assem- 
bly, at the same time and in the same manner as the Governor. The 
provisions of the Constitution as to the transmission of the returns of 
election, counting the votes, declaring the result, deciding when there 
is no election, and when there is a contested election, applicable to the 
election of Governor, shall apply to the election of secretary of Stif, 



History of Georgia 419 

comptroller-general and treasurer; they shall be commissioned by the 
Governor and hold their offices for the same time as the Governor. 

2. Treasurer's Salary. — The salary of the treasurer shall not exceed 
two thousand dollars per annum. The clerical expenses of his depart- 
ment shall not exceed sixteen hundred dollars per annum. 

3. Salary of Secretary of State. — The salary of the secretary of 
State shall not exceed two thousand dollars per annum, and the clerical 
expenses of his department shall not exceed one thousand dollars per 
annum. 

4. Comptroller-General's Salary. — The salary of the comptroller- 
genera! shall not exceed two thousand dollars per annum. The clerical 
expenses of his department, including the insurance department and 
wild-land clerk, shall not exceed four thousand dollars per annum; and 
without said clerk, it shall not exceed three thousand dollars per annum. 

5. Profit from Use of Public Money. — The treasurer shall not be 
allowed, directly or indirectly, to receive any fee, interest, or reward 
from any person, bank, or corporation for the deposit or use, in any 
manner, of the public funds; and the General Assembly shall enforce 
this provision by suitable penalties. 

6. Qualifications. — No person shall be eligible to the office of secre- 
tary of State, comptroller-general, or treasurer, unless he shall have been 
a citizen of the United States for ten years, and shall have resided 
in this State for six years next preceding his election, and shall be 
twenty-five years of age when elected. All of said officers shall give 
bond and security, under regulations to be prescribed by law, for the 
faithful discharge of their duties. 

7. Fees and Perquisites Denied, — The secretary of State, the comp- 
troller-general, and the treasurer, shall not be allowed any fee, per- 
quisite, or compensation, other than their salaries, as prescribed by law, 
except their necessary expenses when absent from the seat of govern- 
ment on business for the State. 

Section III. Seal of State. 
1. Great Seal. — The Great Seal of the State shall be deposited in 
the office of the secretary of State, and shall not be affixed to any 
instrument of writing except by order of the Governor, or General 
Assembly, and that now in use shall be the Great Seal of the State 
until otherwise provided by law. 

ARTICLE VI. 
JUDICIARY. 

Section I. Courts. 

I. Courts Enumerated. — The judicial powers of this State shall be 
vested in a Supreme Court, a Court of Appeals, superior courts, courts 



420 History of Georgia 

of ordinary, justices of the peace, commissioned notaries public, and 
such other courts as have been or may be established by law. 

Section II. Supreme Court and Court of Appeals. 

1. Supreme Court Judges. — The Supreme Court shall consist of a 
Chief Justice and five Associate Justices. A majority of the court shall 
constitute a quorum. 

2. Governor to Designate Judges to Preside, When. — When one 
or more of the judges are disqualified from deciding any case, by in- 
terest or otherwise, the Governor shall designate a judge, or judges, of 
the superior courts to preside in said case. 

3. Bondholding Judge Disqualified, When. — No judge of any court 
shall preside in any case where the validity of any bond — Federal, State, 
corporation, or municipal — is involved, who holds in his own right, or 
as the representative of others, any material interest in the class of 
bonds upon which the question to be decided arises. 

4. Terms of Office. — The Chief Justices and Associate Justices shall 
hold their offices for six years, and until their successors are qualified; 
but appointments to fill vacancies shall only be for the unexpired term, 
or until such vacancies are filled by elections, agreeably to the mode 
pointed out by the Constitution. 

5. Jurisdiction, — The Supreme Court shall have no original juris- 
diction, but shall be a court alone for the trial and correction of errors 
in law and equity from the superior courts in all civil cases, whether 
legal or equitable, originating therein or carried thereto from the court 
of ordinary, and in all cases of conviction of a capital felony, and for 
the determination of questions certified to it by the Court of Appeals; 
and shall sit at the seat of government at such times in each year as 
are or may be prescribed by law, for the trial and determination of 
writs of error from the superior courts and of questions certified to it 
as aforesaid. (Clauses of temporary force omitted. Amendment of 
1906.) 

6. Cases, How Disposed of. — The Supreme Court shall dispose of 
every case at the first or second term after such writ of error is brought; 
and in case the plaintiff in error shall not be prepared at the first term 
to prosecute the case — unless prevented by providential cause — it shall be 
stricken from the docket, and the judgment below shall stand affirmed. 

7. Judgments May Be Withheld. — In any case the court may, in its 
discretion, withhold its judgment until the next term after the same is 
argued. 

8. The Supreme Court shall hereafter consist of a Chief Justice and 
five Associate Justices. The court shall have power to hear and deter- 
mine cases when sitting, either in> a body or in two divisions of three 
judges each, under such regulations as may be prescribed by the General 
Assembly. A majority of either division shall constitute a quorum for 



History of Georgia 421 

that division. The Chief Justice and the Associate Justices of the Su- 
preme Court shall hereafter be elected by the people at the same time 
and in the same manner as the Governor and State House officers are 
elected. (Clauses of only temporary force omitted.) All terms (except 
unexpired terms) shall be for six years each. In case of any vacancy 
which causes an unexpired term, the same shall be filled by executive 
appointment, and the person appointed by the Governor shall hold his 
office until the next regular election, and until his successor for the 
balance of the unexpired term shall have been elected and qualified. The 
returns of said special election shall be made to the secretary of state. 
(Amendment of 1896.) 

9. Court of Appeals. — The Court of Appeals shall, until otherwise 
provided by law, consist of three judges, of whom two shall constitute 
a quorum. It shall sit at the seat of government and at such other 
places as may be prescribed by law. (This paragraph is too long for 
incorporation here. The rest of it provides a time for the election of 
judges, their terms of office, etc. The rules applying to Supreme Court 
justices are made to apply in the case of Appellate Court judges. The 
Court of Appeals is given jurisdiction over all cases from the superior 
courts in which such jurisdiction is not conferred by the Constitution 
on the Supreme Court, and over cases from the city courts. The 
Supreme Court has exclusive jurisdiction over all cases involving in- 
terpretation of the Constitution. Amendment of 1906.) 

Section III. Superior Courts. 

1. Terms, etc., of Superior Court Judges. — There shall be a judge 
of the superior courts for each judicial circuit, whose term of office shall 
be four years, and until his successor is qualified. He may act in other 
circuits when authorized by law. The legislature shall have authority 
to add one or more additional judges of the superior court for any 
judicial circuit in this State, and shall have authority to regulate the 
manner in which the judges of such circuits shall dispose of the business 
thereof, and shall fix the time at which the term or terms of office of 
such additional judge or judges shall begin, and the manner of his 
appointment or election, and shall have authority from time to time 
to add to the number of such judges in any judicial circuit, or to reduce 
the number of judges in any judicial circuit; Provided, that at all times 
there shall be at least one judge in every judicial circuit of this State. 

2. Elections, When to Be Made. — The successors to the present and 
subsequent incumbents shall be elected by the electors, entitled to vote 
for members of the General Assembly of the whole State, at the general 
election held for such members, next preceding the expiration of their 
respective terms. (Prior to amendment of 1898 these judges were 
elected by the legislature.) 

3. Terms Begin, When. — The terms of the judges to be elected under 



422 History of Georgia 



n 



the Constitution (except to fill vacancies) shall begin on the first day of 
January after their election. Every vacancy occasioned by death, resig- 
nation or other causes shall be filled by appointments of the Governor 
until the first day of January after the general election held next after 
the expiration of thirty days from the time such vacancy occurs, at 
which election a successor for the unexpired term shall be elected. 

Section IV. Jurisdiction of Superior Courts. 

1. Exclusive Jurisdiction. — The superior court shall have exclusive 
jurisdiction in cases of divorce; in criminal cases where the offender is 
subjected to loss of life, or confinement in the penitentiary; in cases 
respecting titles to land and equity cases. 

2. Equity May Be Merged in Common Law Courts. — The General 
Assembly may confer upon the courts of common law all the powers 
heretofore exercised by courts of equity in this State. 

3. General Jurisdiction. — Said courts shall have jurisdiction in all 
civil cases, except as hereinafter provided. 

4. Appellate Jurisdiction. — They shall have appellate jurisdiction 
in all such cases as may be provided by law. 

5. Certiorari, Mandamus, etc. — They shall have power to correct 
errors in inferior judicatories, by writ of certiorari, which shall only 
issue on the sanction of the judge; and said courts and the judges 
thereof shall have power to issue writs of mandamus, prohibitioK, scire 
facias, and all other writs that may be necessary for carrying their 
powers fully into effect, and shall have such other powers as are or may 
be conferred on them by law. 

6. Appeal from One Jury to Another. — The General Assembly may 
provide for an appeal from one jury, in the superior and city courts, 
to another, and the said court may grant new trials on legal grounds. 

7. Judgment By the Court. — The court shall render judgment with- 
out the verdict of a jury, in all civil cases founded on unconditional 
contracts in writing, where an issuable defense is not filed under oath 
or affirmation. 

8. Sessions. — The superior courts shall sit in each county not less 
than twice in each year, at such times as have been or may be ap- 
pointed by law. 

9. Presiding Judge Disqualified. — The General Assembly may pro- 
vide by law for the appointment of some proper person to preside in 
cases where the presiding judge is, from any cause, disqualified. 

Section V. Judges of Superior and City Courts. 

I. Judges of Superior and City Courts May Alternate, When. — In 
any county within which there is, or hereafter may be, a city court, the 
judge of said court, and of the superior court, may preside in the courts 



History of Georgia 423 

of each other in cases where the judge of either court is disqualified to 
preside. 

Section VI. Court of Ordinary. 

1. Ordinary, Appeals from. — The powers of a court of ordinary, and 
of probate, shall be vested in an ordinary for each county, from whose 
decision there may be an appeal (or, by consent of parties, without a 
decision) to the superior court, under regulations prescribed by law. 

2. Powers. — The courts of ordinary shall have such powers in relation 
to roads, bridges, ferries, public buildings, paupers, county officers, county 
funds, county taxes, and other county matters, as may be conferred on 
them by law. 

3. Term of Office. — The ordinary shall hold his office for the term of 
four years, and until his successor is elected and qualified. 

Section VII. Justices of the Peace. 

1. Justices, Number and Term. — There shall be in each militia dis- 
trict one justice of the peace, whose official term, except when elected to 
fill an unexpired term, shall be four years. (An amendment in 1912 
provides that the General Assembly may in its discretion abolish justice 
courts and the office of justice of the peace and of notary public ex 
officio justice of the peace in any city of over 20,000 population, except 
Savannah, and establish a special court or courts in lieu thereof.) 

2. Jurisdiction. — Justices of the peace shall have jurisdiction in all 
civil cases, arising ex contractu, and in cases of injuries or damages to 
personal property, when the principal sum does not exceed one hundred 
dollars, and shall sit monthly at fixed times and places; but in all cases 
there may be an appeal to a jury in said court, or an appeal to the 
superior court, under such regulations as may be prescribed by law. 

3. Elections and Commission. — Justices of the peace shall be elected 
by the legal voters in their respective districts, and shall be commis- 
sioned by the Governor. They shall be removable on conviction for 
malpractice in office. 

Section VIII. Notaries Public. 
I. Notaries Public, How Appointed, etc. — Commissioned notaries 
public, not to exceed one for each militia district, may be appointed by 
the judges of superior courts in their respective circuits, upon recom- 
mendation of the grand juries of the several counties. They shall be 
commissioned by the Governor for the term of four years, and shall be 
ex officio justices of the peace, and shall be removable on conviction for 
malpractice in office. 

Section IX. Uniformity of Courts. 

1. Uniformity Provided for. — The jurisdiction, powers, proceedings 
and practice of all courts or officers invested with judicial powers (except 



424 History of Georgia 

city courts), of the same grade or class, so far as regulated by law, and 
the force and effect of the process, judgment and decree, by such courts, 
severally shall be uniform. This uniformity must be established by the 
General Assembly. 

Section X. Attorney-General. 

1. Attorney-General; Election. — There shall be an attorney-general 
of this State, who shall be elected by the people at the same time, for the 
same term, and in the same manner as the Governor. 

2. Duties. — It shall be the duty of the attorney-general to act as the 
legal adviser of the Executive Department, to represent the State in the 
Supreme Court in all capital felonies; and in all civil and criminal cases 
in any court when required by the Governor, and to perform such other 
services as shall be required of him by law. 

Section XI. Solicitor-General. 

1. Solicitor-General; Term. — There shall be a solicitor-general for 
each judicial circuit, whose official term (except to fill a vacancy) shall 
be four years. The successors of present and subsequent incumbents shall 
be elected by the electors of the whole State, qualified to vote for members 
of the General Assembly, at the general election held next preceding the 
expiration of their respective terms. Every vacancy occasioned by death, 
resignation or other cause shall be filled by appointment of the Governor 
until the first day of January after the general election held next after 
the expiration of thirty days from the time such vacancy occurs, at which 
election a successor for the unexpired term shall be elected. (Clause of 
temporary force omitted.) 

2. Duties. — It shall be the duty of the solicitor-general to represent 
the State in all cases in the superior courts of his circuit, and in all cases 
taken up from his circuit to the Supreme Court, and to perform such 
other services as shall be required of him by law. 

Section XII. Elections of Judges, etc. 
(Repealed.) 

Section XIII. Judicial Salaries. 
1. Salaries of Judges. — The judges of the Supreme Court shall have, 
out of the treasury of the State, salaries not to exceed three thousand 
dollars per annum, the judges of the superior courts shall have salaries 
not to exceed two thousand dollars per annum; the attorney-general 
shall have a salary not to exceed two thousand dollars per annum; and 
the solicitors-general each shall have salaries not to exceed two hundred 
and fifty dollars per annum, but the attorney-general shall not have any 
fee or perquisite in any cases arising after the adoption of this Constitu- 
tion. 



History of Georgia 425 

(The General Assembly has changed most of these salaries. This 
section of the constitution has also been amended to enable the counties 
of Chatham, Fulton, and Richmond to increase the salaries of the judges 
of the circuits in which they lie to five thousand dollars a year.) 

2. How Salaries may be Changed. — The General Assembly may at 
any time, by a two-thirds vote of each branch, prescribe other and dif- 
ferent salaries for any, or all, of the above officers, but no such change 
shall affect the officers then in commission. 

Section XIV. Qualification of Judges, etc. 
I. Qualifications. — No person shall be judge of the Supreme or su- 
perior courts or attorney-general, unless, at the time of his election, he 
shall have attained the age of thirty years, and shall have been a citizen 
of the State three years, and have practiced law for seven years; and no 
person shall be hereafter elected solicitor-general, unless, at the time 
of his election, he shall have attained twenty-five years of age, shall 
have been a citizen of the State for three years, and shall have prac- 
ticed law for three years next preceding his election. 

Section XV. Divorce. 

1. Divorce. — No total divorce shall be granted, except on the con- 
current verdicts of two juries at different terms of the court. 

2. Last Jury Determines Disabilities. — When a divorce is granted, 
the jury rendering the final verdict shall determine the rights and dis- 
abilities of the parties. 

Section XVI. Venue. 

1. Divorce Cases, Where Brought. — Divorce cases shall be brought 
in the county where the defendant resides, if a resident of this State ; if 
the defendant be not a resident of this State, then in the county in which 
the plaintiff resides. 

2. Land, Titles, Where Tried. — Cases respecting titles to land shall 
be tried in the county where the land lies, except where a single tract is 
divided by a county line, in which case the superior court in either 
county shall have jurisdiction. 

3. Equity Cases. — Equity cases shall be tried in the county where 
a defendant resides against whom substantial relief is prayed. 

4. Suits Against Joint Obligors, etc. — Suits against joint obligors, 
joint promisors, copartners, or joint trespassers, residing in different 
counties, may be tried in either county. 

5. Suits Against Maker and Indorser. etc. — Suits against the maker 
and indorser of promissory notes, or drawer, acceptor and indorser of 
foreign or inland bills of exchange, or like instruments, residing in 
different counties, shall be brought in the county where the maker or 
acceptor resides. 



426 History of Georgia 

6. All Other Cases. — All other civil cases shall be tried in the 
county where the defendant resides, and all criminal cases shall be 
tried in the county where the crime was committed, except cases in 
the superior courts where the judge is satisfied that an impartial jury 
cannot be obtained in such county. 

Section XVII. Change of Venue. 
I. Power to Change Venue. — The power to change the venue in 
civil and criminal cases shall be vested in the superior courts, to be 
exercised in such manner as has been, or shall be, provided by law. 

Section XVIII. Jury Trials. 

1. Trial by Jury. — The right of trial by jury, except where it is 
otherwise provided in this Constitution, shall remain inviolate, but 
the General Assembly may prescribe any number, not less than five, 
to constitute a trial or traverse jury in courts other than the superior 
and city courts. 

2. Selection of Jurors. — The General Assembly shall provide by 
law for the selection of the most experienced, intelligent and upright 
men to serve as grand jurors, and intelligent and upright men to serve 
as traverse jurors. Nevertheless, the grand jurors shall be competent 
to serve as traverse jurors. 

3. Compensation of Jurors. — It shall be the duiy of the General 
Assembly, by general laws, to prescribe the manner of fixing com- 
pensation of jurors in all counties in this State. 

Section XIX. County Commissioners. 

I. Power to Create County Commissioners. — The General Assembly 
shall have power to provide for the creation of county commissioners 
in such counties as may require them, and to define their duties. 

Section XX. W^'hat Courts May Be Abolished. 

I. Power to Abolish Courts. — All courts not specially mentioned by \ 
name in the first section of this Article may be abolished in any county, ' 
at the discretion of the General Assembly. 

Section XXI. Supreme Court Costs. 
I. Costs in Supreme Court. — The costs in the Supreme Court shall 
not exceed ten dollars, until otherwise provided by law. Plaintiffs 
in error shall not be required to pay costs in said court when the usual 
pauper oath is filed in the court below. 

ARTICLE VII. 
FINANCE, TAXATION AND PUBLIC DEBT. 
Section I. Power of Taxation. 
I. Taxation, How and for What Purpose Exercised. — ^The pow(?rs 



History of Georgia 427 

of taxation over the whole State shall be exercised by the General As- 
sembly for the following purposes only: 

For the support of the State government and the public institutions. 

For educational purposes, in instructing children in the elementary 
branches of an English education only. 

To pay the interest on the public debt. 

To pay the principal of the public debt. 

To suppress insurrection, to repel invasion, and defend the State in 
time of war. 

To supply the soldiers who lost a limb, or limbs, in the military 
service of the Confederate States, with substantial artificial limbs during 
life, and to make suitable provision for such Confederate Idiers as may 
have been otherwise disabled or permanently injured in such service; 
or who, by reason of age and poverty, or infirmity and poverty, or blind- 
ness and poverty, are unable to provide a living for themselves; and 
for the widows of such Confederate soldiers as may have died in the 
service of Confederate States, or since from wounds received therein, or 
disease contracted therein: Provided, this paragraph shall only apply to 
such widows as were married at the time of such service and have re- 
mained unmarried since the death of such soldier husbands. 

To make provision for the payment of pensions to any ex-Confed- 
erate soldier, now resident of this State, who enlisted in the military 
service of this State, or who enlisted in the military service of the Con- 
federate States, during the civil war between the States of the United 
States, and who performed actual military service in the armies of the 
Confederate States, or the organized militia of this State, and was hon- 
orably discharged therefrom, and to widows, now residents of this State, 
of ex-Confederate soldiers who enlisted in the military service of this 
State, or who enlisted in the military service of the Confederate States, 
and who performed actual service in the armies of the Confederate 
States, or of the organized militia of this State, who died in said military 
service, or was honorably discharged therefrom: Provided, that no per- 
son shall be entitled to the provisions of this Constitutional amendment 
the total value of whose property, of every description, including money 
and choses in action, shall exceed fifteen hundred dollars, and provided 
further, that only those widows who were married to such soldier or 
ex-soldier previous to the year 1870 shall be entitled to the provisions 
of this Constitutional amendment. No widow of a soldier killed during 
the war shall be deprived of her pension by reason of having subse- 
quently married another veteran, who is dead, unless she receives a pen- 
sion on account of being the widow of such second husband. (This 
pension system is the result of a number of amendments, adopted in 
1885, 1889, 1900, 1909, and 1912.) 

2. Levy of Taxes Limited. — The levy of taxes on property for any 
one year by the General Assembly for all purposes, except to provide for 
repelling invasion, suppressing insurrection, or defending the State in 



4^8 History of Georgia 

time of war, shall not exceed five mills on each dollar o£ the value of the 
property taxable in the State. (Amendment of 1904.) 

Section II. Taxation and Exemptions. 

1. Must be Uniform, etc. — All taxation shall be uniform upon 
the same class of subjects, and ad 'valorem, on all property subject to be 
taxed within the territorial limits of the authority levying the tax, and 
shall be levied and collected under general laws. The General Assem- 
bly may, however, impose a tax upon such domestic animals as, from 
their nature and habits, are destructive of other property. 

2. Exemptions. — The General Assembly may, by law, exempt from 
taxation all public property, places of religious worship or burial ; all 
institutions of purely public charity; all buildings erected for and used 
as a college, incorporated academy, or other seminary of learning; the 
real and personal estate of any public library, and that of any other lit- 
erary association, used by or connected with such library; all books 
and philosophical apparatus; and all paintings and statuary of any 
company or association, kept in a public hall, and not held as merchan- 
dise, or for purposes of sale or gain: Provided, the property so ex- 
empted be not used for purposes of private or corporate profit or income. 
The General Assembly shall, further, have power to exempt from taxa- 
tion farm products, including baled cotton, grown in this State and re- 
maining in the hands of the producer, but not longer than for the year 
next after their production. (As amended in 1912.) 

3. Poll Tax. — No poll tax shall be levied except for educational pur- 
poses, and such tax shall not exceed one dollar annually, upon each poll. 

4. Laws Exempting Property Void. — All laws exempting property 
from taxation, other than the property herein enumerated, shall be void. 

5. Tax on Corporations. — The power to tax corporations and cor- 
porate property shall not be surrendered or suspended by any contract 
or grant to which the State shall be a party. 

6. All persons or classes of persons who were, by laws of force, Jan- 
uary ist, 1911, required to make returns for taxation to the comptroller- 
general, and all who may hereafter be so required, shall, on or before 
the first day of March of each year, make such returns as of date of 
January ist of that year, and shall pay the taxes arising on such re- 
turns in favor of the State on or before the first of September of the 
same year. 

Section III. State Debt. 

I. Debts; for What Contracted. — No debt shall be contracted by or 
on behalf of the State, except to supply such temporary deficit as may 
exist in the Treasury in any year from necessary delay in collecting 
the taxes of that year, to repel invasion, suppress insurrection, and de- 
fend the State in time of war, or to pay the existing public debt; but 
the debt created to supply deficiencies in revenue shall not exceed, in 



History of Georgia 429 

the aggregate, five hundred thousand dollars, and any loan made for 
this purpose shall be repaid out of the taxes levied for the year in which 
the loan is made. (As amended in 1912.) 

Section IV. Debt, How Contracted, 

I. Form of Laws to Borrow Money. — All laws authorizing the bor- 
rowing of money by or on behalf of the State shall specify the purposes 
for which the money is to be used, and the money so obtained shall be 
used for the purpose specified, and for no other. 

Section V. State Aid. 
I. State Aid Forbidden. — The credit of the State shall not be pledged 
or loaned by any individual, company, corporation or association, and 
the State shall not become a joint owner or stockholder in any company, 
association or corporation. 

Section VI. Purposes of Taxation by Counties and Cities. 

1. Restrictions on Counties and Cities. — The General Assembly 
shall not authorize any county, municipal corporation, or political divi- 
sion of this State, to become a stockholder in any company, corporation, 
or association, or to appropriate money for, or to loan its credit to, any 
corporation, company, association, institution, or individual, except for 
purely charitable purposes. This restriction shall not operate to prevent 
the support of schools by municipal corporations within their respective 
limits: Provided, that if any municipal corporation shall offer to the 
State any property for locating or building a capitol, and the State 
accepts such offer, the corporation may comply with such offer. 

2. Taxing Power of Counties Limited. — The General Assembly shall 
not have power to delegate to any county the right to levy a tax for 
any purpose, except for educational purposes; to build and repair the 
public buildings and bridges; to maintain and support prisoners; to pay 
jurors and coroners, and for litigation, quarantine, roads and expenses 
of courts; to support paupers and pay debts heretofore existing; to pay 
the county police, and to provide for necessary sanitation. (As 
amended in 1910.) 

Section VII. Limitation on Municipal Debts. 
I. Debt of Counties and Cities Not to Exceed Seven Per Cent. — 
The debt hereafter incurred by any county, municipal corporation, or 
political division of this State, except as in this Constitution provided for, 
shall not exceed seven per centum of the assessed value of all the taxable 
property therein, and no such county, municipality, or division, shall 
incur any new debt, except for a temporary loan or loans to supply casual 
deficiencies of revenue, not to exceed one-fifth of one per centum of the 
assessed value of taxable property therein, without the assent of two- 
thirds of the qualified voters thereof, at an election for that purpose, to 



430 History of Georgia 

be held as may be prescribed by law; but any city, the debt of which 
does not exceed seven per centum of the assessed value of the taxable 
property at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, may be author- 
ized by law to increase, at any time, the amount of said debt, three per 
centum upon such assessed valuation. (An amendment in 1900 per- 
mits Augusta to increase its debt for protection against floods.) 

2. County and City Bonds, How Paid. — Any county, municipal cor- 
poration, or political division of this State, which shall incur any bonded 
indebtedness under the provisions of this Constitution, shall, at or before 
the time of so doing, provide for the assessment and collection of an 
annual tax, sufficient in amount to pay the principal and interest of said 
debt within thirty years from the date of the incurring of said indebt- 
edness. 

Section VIII. Assumption of Debt. 

I. Assumption of Debts Forbidden. — The State shall not assume the 
debt, nor any part thereof, of any county, municipal corporation, or po- 
litical division of the State, unless such debt shall be contracted to enable 
the State to repel invasion, suppress insurrection, or defend itself in 
time of war. 

Section IX. Public Money. 

1. Profit on Public Money. — The receiving, directly or indirectly, 
by any officer of the State or county, or member or officer of the General 
Assembly, of any interests, profits or perquisites arising from the use or 
loan of public funds in his hands, or moneys to be raised through his 
agency for State or county purposes, shall be deemed a felony, and pun- 
ishable as may be prescribed by law, a part of which punishment shall 
be a disqualification from holding office. 

Section X. City Debts. 

1. City Debts, How Incurred.- — Municipal corporations shall not 
incur any debt until provision therefor shall have been made by the 
municipal government. 

Section XL Void Bonds. 

1. Certain Bonds Shall Not be Pajd. — The General Assembly shall 
have no authority to appropriate money, directly or indirectly, to pay 
the whole, or any part, of the principal or interest of the bonds, or other 
obligations, which have been pronounced illegal, null and void, by the 
General Assembly, and the constitutional amendments ratified by a vote 
of the people on the first day of May, 1877; nor shall the General As- 
sembly have authority to pay any of the obligations created by the State 
under laws passed during the late war between the States, nor any of 
the bonds, notes, or obligations made and entered into during the exist- 
ence of said war, the time for the payment of which was fixed after the 



History of Georgia 431 

ratification of a treaty of peace between the United States and the Con- 
federate States; nor shall the General Assembly pass any law, or the 
Governor, or other State official, enter into any contract or agreement, 
whereby the State shall be made a party to any suit in any court of this 
State, or of the United States, instituted to test the validity of any such 
bonds or obligations. 

Section XII. Public Debt Not to be Increased. 

1. Bonded Debt Not to Increase. — The bonded debt of the State 
shall never be increased, except to repel invasion, suppress insurrection, 
or to defend the State in time of war. 

Section XIII. Public Property Pledged for State's Debt. 
I. State's Property May be Sold to Pay Bonded Debt, — The pro- 
ceeds of the sale of the Western and Atlantic, Macon and Brunswick, or 
other railroads held by the State, and any other property owned by the 
State, whenever the General Assembly may authorize the sale of the 
whole, or any part thereof, shall be applied to the payment of the bonded 
debt of the State, and shall not be used for any other purpose whatever, 
so long as the State has any existing bonded debt: Pro'vided, that the 
proceeds of the sale of the Western and Atlantic Railroad shall be ap- 
plied to the payment of the bonds for which said railroad has been 
mortgaged, in preference to all other bonds. 

Section XIV. Sinking Fund. 

I. Sinking Fund. — The General Assembly shall raise by taxation each 
year, in addition to the sum required to pay the public expenses and in- 
terests on the public debt, the sum of one hundred thousand dollars, 
which shall be held as a sinking fund to pay off and retire the bonds 
of the State which have not yet matured, and shall be applied to no 
other purpose whatever. If the bonds cannot at any time be purchased 
at or below par, then the sinking fund, herein provided for, may be 
loaned by the Governor and treasurer of the State: Provided, the se- 
curity which shall be demanded for said loan shall consist only of the 
valid bonds of the State; but this section shall not take effect until the 
eight per cent currency bonds, issued under the Act of February 19th, 
1873, shall have been paid. 

Section XV. Reports. 
I. Quarterly Reports of Comptroller and Treasurer. — The comp- 
troller-general and treasurer shall each make to the Governor a quar- 
terly report of the financial condition of the State, which report shall 
include a statement of the assets, liabilities and income of the State, 
and expenditures therefor, for the three months preceding; and it shall 
be the duty of the Governor to carefully examine the same by himself, 
or through competent persons connected with his department , an \ 



432 History of Georgia 

cause an abstract thereof to be published for the information of the 
people, which abstract shall be indorsed by him as having been ex- 
amined. 

Section XVI. Donations. 

1. Donations Forbidden. — The General Assembly shall not, by vote, 
resolution, or order, grant any donation, or gratuity, in favor of any 
person, corporation, or association. 

2. Extra Compensation Forbidden. — The General Assembly shall 
not grant or authorize extra compensation to any public officer, agent 
or contractor, after the service has been rendered, or the contract entered 
into. 

Section XVII. Public Printing. 
I. Public Printing. — The office of the State printer shall cease with 
the expiration of the term of the present incumbent, and the General 
Assembly shall provide, by law, for letting the public printing to the 
lowest responsible bidder, or bidders, who shall give adequate and 
satisfactory security for the faithful performance thereof. No member 
of the General Assembly, or other public officer, shall be interested, 
either directly or indirectly, in any such contract. 

ARTICLE VIII. 
EDUCATION. 
Section I. Common Schools, 
I. Common Schools. — There shall be a thorough system of common 
schools for the education of children, as nearly uniform as practicable, 
the expenses of which shall be provided for by taxation, or otherwise. 
The schools shall be free to all children of the Stale, but reparate 
schools shall be provided for the white and colored races. (As 
amended in 1912.) 

Section II. School Commissioner. 

I. State School Commissioner. — There shall be a State school com- 
missioner, elected by the people at the same time and manner as the 
Governor and State House officers are elected, whose term of office 
shall be two years, and until his successor is elected and qualified. His 
office shall be at the seat of government, and he shall be paid a salary 
not to exceed two thousand dollars per annum. The General Assembly 
may substitute for the State school commissioner such officer, or officers, 
as may be deemed necessary to perfect the system of public education. 
(Prior to Amendment of 1896, the commissioner was appointed by the 
governor.) 

Section III. School Fund. 

I. School Fund. — The poll tax, any educational fund now belonging 
to the State (except the endowment of, and debt due to, the University 



History of Georgia 433 

of Georgia), a special tax on shows and exhibitions, and on the sale of 
spirituous and malt liquors, which the General assembly is hereby 
authorized to assess, and the proceeds of any commutation tax for mili- 
tary service, and all taxes that may be assessed on such domestic animals 
as, from their nature and habits, are destructive to other property, are 
hereby set apart and devoted for the support of common schools. 

Section IV. Educational Tax. 
I. Local Taxation for Public Schools. — Authority may be granted 
to counties, militia districts, school districts, and to municipal corpora- 
tions upon the recommendation of the corporate authority, to establish 
and maintain public schools in their respective limits, by local taxation; 
but no such local laws shall take effect until the same shall have been 
submitted to a vote of the qualified voters in each county, militia dis- 
trict, school district, or municipal corporation, and approved by a two- 
thirds majority of those voting at such election; and the General As- 
sembly may prescribe who shall vote on such questions. (Militia dis- 
tricts and school districts added by amendment of 1904.) 

Section V. Local Systems. 
I. Local Schools not Affected. — Existing local school systems shall 
not be affected by this Constitution. Nothing contained in first section 
of this article shall be construed to deprive schools in this State, not 
common schools, from participation in the educational fund of the State, 
as to all pupils therein taught in the elementary branches of an English 
education. 

Section VL University of Georgia. 
I. State University. — The trustees of the University of Georgia may 
accept bequests, donations and grants of land, or other property, for 
the use of said University. In addition to the payment of the annual 
interest on the debt due by the State to the University, the General 
Assembly may, from time to time, make such donations thereto as the 
condition of the treasury will authorize. And the General Assembly 
may also, from time to time, make such appropriations of money as the 
condition of the treasury will authorize, to any college or university 
(not exceeding one in number) now established, or hereafter to be es- 
tablished, in this State for the education of persons of color. 



ARTICLE IX. 

HOMESTEAD AND EXEMPTIONS. 

Section I. Homestead. 

I. Homestead and Exemption. — There shall be e: empt from levy 
and sale, by virtue of any process whatever under the laws of this 
State, excep*^ as hereinafter excepted, of the property of every head of 



434 History of Georgia 

a family, or guardian or trustee of a family of minor children, or 
every aged or infirm person, or person having the care and support of 
dependent females of any age, who is not the head of the family, 
realty or personalty, or both, to the value in the aggregate of sixteen 
hundred dollars. 

Section II. Exemption. 

I. Protection Guaranteed. — No court or ministerial officer in this 
State shall ever have jurisdiction or authority to enforce any judgment, 
execution or decree, against the property set apart for such purpose, in- 
cluding such improvements as may be made thereon from time to time, 
except for taxes, for the purchase money of the same, for labor done 
thereon, for material furnished therefor, or for the removal of incum- 
brances thereon. 

Section III. Waiver of Homestead. 

I. May Be Waived, How Far; How Sold. — The debtor shall have 
power to waive or renounce in writing his right to the benefit of the ex- 
emption provided for in this Article, except as to wearing apparel, and 
not exceeding three hundred dollars worth of household and kitchen 
furniture, and provisions, to I e selected by himself and his wife, if any, 
and he shall not, after it is set apart, alienate or encumber the property 
so exempted, but it may be sold by the debtor, and his wife, if any, 
jointly, with the sanction of the judge of the superior court of the 
county where the debtor resides or the land is situated, the proceeds 
to be reinvested upon the same uses. 

Section IV. Homestead Set Apart, How. 

1. Setting Apart Short Homestead. — The General Assembly shall 
provide, by law, as early as practicable, for the setting apart and valu- 
ation of said property. But nothing in this Article shall be construed to 
affect or repeal the existing laws for exemption of property from sale, 
contained in the present Code of this State, in paragraphs 2040 to 2049, 
inclusive, and the acts amendatory thereto. It may be optional with 
the applicant to take either, but not both, of such exemptions. 
Section V. Short Homestead Waived. 

I. Short Homestead may be Waived. — The debtor shall have author- 
ity to waive or renounce in writing his right to the benefit of the ex- 
emption provided for in section four, except as is excepted in section 
three of this Article,. 

Section VI. Homestead Supplemented. 

I. Supplemental Homestead. — The applicant shall at any time have 
the right to supplement his exemption by adding to an amount already 
set apart, which is less than the whole amount of exemption herein 
allowed, a sufficiency to make his exemption equal to the whole amount. 



History of Georgia 435 

Section VII. Former Homesteads Preserved. 

I. Homesteads Heretofore Set Apart, — Homesteads and exemptions 
of personal property which have been heretofore set apart by virtue of 
the provisions of the existing Constitution of this State, and in ac- 
cordance with the laws for the enforcement thereof, or which may be 
hereafter so set apart, at any time, shall be and remain valid aj 
against all debts and liabilities existing at the time of the adoption of 
this Constitution, to the same extent that they would have been had 
said existing Constitution not been revised. 

Section VIII. Prior Rights to Exemption Preserved. 

I. Vested Rights Protected. — Rights which have become vested under 
previously existing laws shall not be affected by anything herein con- 
tained. In all cases in which homesteads have been set apart under the 
Constitution of 1868, and the laws made in pursuance thereof, and a 
bona fide sale of such property has been subsequently made and the 
full purchase price thereof has been paid, all right of exemption in 
such property by reason of its having been so set apart shall cease in so 
far as it affects the right of the purchaser. In all such cases where a 
part only of the purchase price has been paid, such transactions shall 
be governed by the laws now of force in this State, in so far as they 
affect the rights of the purchaser, as though said property had not been 
set apart. 

Section IX. Sale of Homestead. 

1. Sale and Reinvestment of Homestead. — Parties who have taken 
a homestead of realty under the Constitution of 1868 shall have the right 
to sell said homestead and reinvest the same, by order of the judge of 
the superior courts of this State. 

ARTICLE X. 

MILITIA. 

Section I. Militia and Volunteers. 

1. Organization of Militia. — A well regulated militia being essen- 
tial to the peace and security of the State, the General Assembly shall 
have authority to provide by law how the militia of this State shall be 
organized, officered, trained, armed, and equipped; and of whom it 
shall consist. 

2. Volunteers.— The General Assembly shall have power to author- 
ize the formation of volunteer companies, and provide for their organ- 
ization into battalions, regiments, brigades, divisions and corps, with 
such restrictions as may be prescribed by law, and shall have authoritv 
to arm and equip the same. 

3. Pay of Militia. — The officers and men of the militia and volunteer 



436 History of Georgia 

forces shall not be entitled to receive any pay, rations, or emoluments, 
when not in active service by authority of the State. 

ARTICLE XL 
COUNTIES AND COUNTY OFFICERS. 
Section I. Counties. 

1. Counties are Corporate Bodies, — Each county shall be a body 
corporate, with such powers and limitations as may be prescribed by 
law. All suits by or against a county shall be in the name thereof; and 
the metes and bounds of the several counties shall remain as now pre- 
scribed by law, unless changed as hereinafter provided. 

2. New Counties. — No new county shall be created. (An amend- 
ment of 1904 changed this paragraph to the following: There shall 
not be more than 145 counties in this State. But an amendment of 1906 
added a new county, Ben Hill ; and another amendment in 1912 added 
Wheeler and Bleckley counties, so that there are now 148 counties.) 

3. Change of County Lines. — County lines shall not be changed 
unless under the operation of a general law for that purpose. 

4. Change of County Sites. — No county site shall be changed or re- 
moved except by a two-thirds vote of the qualified voters of the county, 
voting at an election held for that purpose, and a two-thirds vote of the 
General Assembly. 

5. Dissolution of Counties. — Any county may be dissolved and 
merged with contiguous counties by a two-thirds vote of the qualified 
electors of such county, voting at an election held for that purpose. 

Section II. County Officers. 

I. County Officers. — The county officers shall be elected by the 
qualified voters of their respective counties, or districts, and shall hold 
their offices for two years. They shall be removed on conviction for 
malpractice in office, and no person shall be eligible to any of the 
offices referred to in this paragraph, unless he shall have been a resident 
of the county for two years and is a qualified voter. 

Section III. Uniformity in County Officfrs. 

1, County Officers to be Uniform. — Whatever tribunal, or officers, 
may hereafter be created by the General Assembly for the transaction of 
county matters shall be uniform throughout the State, and of the same 
name, jurisdiction and remedies, except that the General Assembly 
may provide for the appointment of commissioners of roads and revenues 
in any county. 

Section IV. State Capital. 

I. Capital in Atlanta. — The city of Atlanta shall be the capital of 



History of Georgia 437 

the State, until changed by the sanme authority, and in the same way, 
that is provided for the alteration of this Constitution. 

ARTICLE XII. 

THE LAWS OF GENERAL OPERATION IN FORCE IN THIS 

STATE. 

Section i. 

1. Supreme Law, What Is. — The laws of general operation in this 
State are, first, as the supreme law: The Constitution of the United 
States, the laws of the United States in pursuance thereof, and all treaties 
made under the authority of the United States. 

2. Second in Authoriity. — Second, as next in authority thereto: This 
Constitution. 

3. Third in Authority. — Third, in subordination to the foregoing: 
All laws now of force in this State, not inconsistent with this Constitu- 
tion, and the ordinances of this Convention, shall remain of force until 
the same are modified or repealed by the General Assembly. The tax 
acts and appropriation acts passed by the General Assembly of 1877, and 
approved by the Governor of the State, and not inconsistent with the 
Constitution, are hereby continued in force until altered by law. 

4. Local and Private Acts. — Local and private acts passed for the 
benefit of counties, cities, towns, corporations, and private persons, not 
inconsistent with the supreme law, nor with this Constitution, and which 
have not expired nor been repealed, shall have the force of statute law, 
subject to judicial decision as to their validity when passed, and to any 
limitations imposed by their own terms. 

5. Vested Rights Secured. — All rights,' privileges and immunities 
which may have been vested in, or accrued to any person or persons, or 
corporation in his, her or their own right, or in any fiduciary capacity, 
under and in virtue of any act of the General Assembly, or any judg- 
ment, decree or order, or other proceeding of any court of competent 
jurisdiction in this State, heretofore rendered, shall be held inviolate 
by all courts before which they may be brought in question, unless 
attacked for fraud. 

6. Acts of Courts Confirmed. — All judgments, decrees, orders, and 
other proceedings, of the several courts of this State heretofore made, 
within the limits of their several jurisdictions, are hereby ratified and 
affirmed, subject only to reversal by motion for a new trial, appeal, bill 
of review, 01; other proceeding, in conformity with the law of force 
when they were made. 

7. Existing Officers. — The officers of the government now existing 
shall continue in the exercise of their several functions until their suc- 
cessors are duly elected or appointed, and qualified; but nothing herein 
is to apply to any officer whose office may be abolished by this Con- 
stitution. 

8. Ordinances. — The ordinances of this Convention shall have the 
force of laws until otherwise provided by the General Assembly, except 



438 History of Georgia 

the ordinances in reference to submitting the homestead and capital 
question to a vote of the people, which ordinances, after being voted on, 
shall have the effect of constitutional provisions. 

ARTICLE XIII. 
AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION. 

Section I. 

X. Constitution, How Amended. — Any amendment or amendments 
to this constitution may be proposed in the Senate or House of Repre- 
sentatives, and if the same shall be agreed to, by two-thirds of the mem- 
bers elected to each of the two houses, such proposed amendment or 
amendments shall be entered on their journals, with the yeas and nays 
taken thereon. And the General Assembly shall cause such amendment or 
amendments to be published in one or more newspapers in each con- 
gressional district, for two months previous to the time of holding the 
next general election, and shall also provide for a submission of such 
proposed amendment or amendments to the people at said next general 
election, and if the people shall ratify such amendment or amendments, 
by a majority of the electors qualified to vote for members of the 
General Assembly, voting thereon, such amendment or amendments 
shall become part of this Constitution. When more than one amend- 
ment is submitted at the same time, they shall be so submitted as to 
enable the electors to vote on each amendment separately. 

2. Convention, How Called. — No convention of the people shall be 
called by the General Assembly to revise, amend, or change this Constitu- 
tion unless by a concurrence of two-thirds of all the members of each 
house of the General Assembly. The representation in said convention 
shall be based on population as near as practicable. 

Section II. 

(This section provides for the submission of the Constitution to a vote 
of the people, for ratification or rejection.) 

The Constitution was ratified by a vote of the people at an election 
held on the fifth day of December, 1877. 

The Convention which adopted the Constitution met on the eleventh 
day of July, and adjourned on the twenty-fifth day of August, 1877. 

The amendments that have been adopted are incorporated in the Con- 
stitution as above given, and the dates of the more important amend- 
ments are inserted. Students may compare the original with the 
amended paragraphs by referring to McElreath's Treatise on the Con- 
stitution of Georgia. 



INDEX 



Agriculture, see cotton, rice, slav- 
ery, land tenure, negroes, tenancy. 

Andrews, Bishop J. O., 221. 

Antifederalist party, 165, 166. 

Appeals, Court of, 387. 

Articles of Confederation, 130. 

Atlanta, 275; burned by Sherman, 
290; rapid growth of, 337. 

Augusta, founded, 52; taken by 
British, n8; recapture by Amer- 
icans, 122. 

B 

Baldwin, Abraham, in Federal Con- 
vention, 1787, 133; sketch of, 133; 
Yazoo Commissioner, i6i. 

Barton, Francis S., 288. 

Berrien, John M., sketch of, 174. 

Bethesda Orphanage, 58. 

Black Belt, 207, seq. 

Bleckley, L. E., 374. 

Blodgett, Foster, 307, 317. 

Bloody Marsh, battle of, 77. 

Boundaries, charter, 45 ; dispute 
with Spanish in Florida, 69; St. 
Mary's River made southern 
boundary, 87; dispute with South 
Carolina settled, 151; dispute 
over western lands, 152. 

Broad River, Virginians settle, on, 
142. 

Brown, J. E., sketch of, 285. 

Brown, J. M., sketch of, 363. 

Bulloch, Archibald, sketch of, 116; 
delegate to Continental Congress, 
in. 

Bullock, R. B., 307, 311, 312, 315. 



Carolinians settled in North Cieor- 
gia, 141. 

'"Carpetbagger," 308. 

Central of Georgia R. R., 274. 

Charter of Colony of Georgia, an- 
alyzed, 42, seq. 

Cherokee Indians, original boun- 
daries, 195; early cessions, 195; 
progress in civilization, 196; ex- 
tension of Georgia laws over, 
199; struggle in the courts, 199; 
President Jackson's attitude, 202 ; 
Governor Lumpkin, 202; final 
treaty, 205. 

Civil government of Georgia, 377, 
seq. 

Civil War, 287, seq. 

Clarke, Elijah, in Revolution, 118, 
121 ; in politics, 170. 

Clarke, John, sketch of, 171 ; leader 
of Clarke party, 171. 

Clay, Henry, 241. 

Coastal plain, 11. 

Cobb, Howell, advocates Clay's 
Compromise of 1850, 243; sketch 
of, 243; elected governor, 244; 
advocates secession, 261 ; Presi- 
dent Montgomery Convention, 
264; re-organized Democratic 
party, 309. 

Cobb, T. R. R., 263, 265, 287. 

Compromise of 1850, 241, 243. 

Constitution of the United States, 
movement for a new, 131 ; Fed- 
eral Convention, 131; compro- 
mises, 132; ratification by Geor- 
gia, 139; Amendments to, 300, 
307, 314- 



430 



440 



History of Georgia 



Constitution of Georgia, 1877, 124; 
1789, 137; 1798, 137; i86i, 1865, 
1868, 337; 1877, 378, seq. 

Convict lease system, 354, seq. 

Cotton, 208, 214, 219; reasons why 
slave labor adapted to produc- 
tion of, 227, 321, 322; fall of the 
plantation system, 324; tenant 
system of farming, 329. 

Cotton gin, invention of, 211 

Council of Safety, in Revolution, 
123. 

Crawford, Wm. H., 157; sketch of, 
170. 

Creek Indians, original boundaries, 
181; land cessions under colonial 
and state governments, 182; 
Creek War, 183; final cession, 
190. 

D 

Darien, founded, 53. 

Declaration of Independence, Geor- 
gia signers, 113. 

Democratic Party, 166, 178, 250, 
360, 362. See political parties. 

Democratic-Republican Party, 166. 

Dorchester Colony, 91. 

Douglas, Stephen A., 245. 

Dred Scott Decision, 246. 

E 

Education, ante-bellum, 277, seq.; 

public schools inaugurated, 322; 

agricultural, 333; growth of 

public school system; 343, seq.; 

State Board of, 347; list of State 

Superintendents of, 347. 
Education, State Board of, 347. 
Elbert, Samuel, 118. 
Ellis, Henry, royal governor, 85. 
Emigrants, first to Georgia, 47; 

from Virginia and Carolina, 141. 

See also Salzburgers, Moravians, 

Scots, Scotch-Irish. 



Emory College, 281. 

England, conditions in at time of 

founding of Georgia, 33, seq. 
English Church established in 

Georgia, 86. 
Estaing, Count d', 120. 

F 

Fall line, 9. 

Federalist Party, 165, 167. 

Few, Benjamin, 118. 

Few, William, u8; signs the Fed- 
eral Constitution, 1787, 132. 

Fifteenth Amendment, 314. 

Forsyth, John, sketch of, 176. 

Fourteenth Amendment, rejected, 
306; accepted, 307. 

Frederica, founded, 53 ; attacked by 
Spanish, 76. 

Freedmen's Bureau, 304. 

G 

Galphin, George, 144. 

Geography, physical, of Georgia, 
5, seq. 

"Georgia Platform," 244. 

Georgia R. R., 273. 

Gilmer, G. R., "Georgians" quoted, 
148 ; policy towards Cherokees 
while governor, 204. 

Gordon, John B., 287, 311. 

Government, under Trustee, 54; as 
Crown Province, 83 ; under Con- 
stitution of 1777, 126; Constitu- 
tions of 1789 and 1798, 137; 
under Constitution of 1877, 378, 
seq. 

Grady, H. A., 370. 

Gwinnett, Button, signer of Dec- 
laration of Independence, 113; 
sketch of, 124. 

H 

Habersham, James, sketch of, S6\ 
favors introduction of slavery^ 
66', large planter, 93; maintains 
allegiance to King George, 107. 



History of Georgia 



441 



Habersham, Joseph, iii; arrests 
Governor Wright, 113. 

Hall, Lyman, delegate to Conti- 
nental Congress, 112; sketch of, 

US- 
Head Rights, system of land distri- 
bution, 141, 143. 
Eiill, B. H., opposes secession, 256; 
candidate for governor, 1857, 
284; sketch of, 309, 315. 
Hill, W. B, 374. 

Houston, John, 107; sketch of, iii; 
delegate to Continental Congress, 
III. 
Huger, Isaac, in attack on Savan- 
nah, 1779, 121. 



Indented servant, 64. 

Indians, aboriginal life, 17, seq. ; 

mounds, 27. See also Cherokees 

and Creeks. 

J 

Jackson, Andrew, crushes nullifica- 
tion movement, 174; his enemies 
create Whig Party, 178; as In- 
dian fighter, 188; attitude to- 
wards Cherokee controversy 
while President, 202. 

Jackson, James, 116, 121, 122, 123; 
fights Yazoo Fraud, 158; sketch, 
158; leader of aristocratic party, 
170. 

Jenkins, C. J., 301. 

Johnson, H. V., opposes secession, 
256; sketch of, 300. 

Jones, Noble, 108. 

Jones, N. W., sketch of, 107 ; breaks 
into powder magazine in Savan- 
nah, m; delegate to Continental 
Congress, 112. 



K 



Ku Klux, 326. 



Land Lottery, 185. 

Land tenure in colonial times, 58 ; 
repeal of land law, 63 ; post- 
bellum tenancy, 329, seq. 

Lanier, Sidney, 368. 

Lee, Richard Henry, in Revolution, 
122. 

Lincoln, Benjamin, 119; attacks 
Savannah, 120. 

Long, Crawford W., 366. 

Longstreet, J. L., 287. 

Louisville made the capital, 144. 

Lumpkin, Wilson, sketch of, 202 ; 
Indian relations, 204. 

M 

McDonald, Charles J., 245. 

Mcintosh, Lachlan, at attack on Sa- 
vannah, 1779, 120. 

Manual Labor Schools, ante-bel- 
lum, 279. 

Manufactures, in ante-bellum pe- 
riod, 228, 268 ; in post-bellum 
period, 341. 

Marshall, John, Chief Justice, de- 
cision in Cherokee case, 200, 202. 

Mercer University, 280, 283. 

Middle Georgia, settled by Vir- 
ginians and Carolinians, 141. 

Milledge, John, in; Yazoo Com- 
missioner, 161; sketch, 161. 

Milledgeville made the capital, 
144; Sherman in, 293. 

Missouri compromise, 258. 

Moravians, 52. 

Musgrove, Mary, 49. 

N 

Negroes, enfranchised, 307 ; educa- 
tion of, 323; landownership, 331; 
convict system, 354; disfran- 
chised, 358. See slavery. 

North Georgia, settled by Virgin- 
ians and Carolinians, 141. 



U2 



History of Georgia 



Northen, W. J., 361. 
Nullification, 173 ; effect on state 
politics, 174, seq. 

O 

Oglethorpe, sketch of, 40; treats 
with Indians, 48 ; in Spanish 
War, 69, seq. 

Oglethorpe University, 281. 

Orr, G. J., 343. 



Physical geography of Georgia, 5, 
seq. 

Piedmont region, 9. 

Pierce, G. F., 369. 

Pierce, Lovick, opposes secession, 
258. 

Political Parties, Federalist and 
Anti-Federalist, 165-6; Demo- 
cratic-Republican, 166; Troup 
and Clarke factions, 170, seq.: 
Union and State Rights, 172; 
Whig and Democratic, 178 ; Re- 
publican, 247, 250; Constitu- 
tional, Union and Southern 
Rights, 244-5 ; solid Democracy, 
360, 362; Populist, 360. 

"Poor schools," 279. 

Population statistics, colonial, 90; 
in 1790, 142; in 1810, 267; in 
i860, 267; in 1910, 336. 

Prisons for debt, 36. 

Prohibition, colonial, 61 ; repealed, 
64; Act of, 1907, 357. 

Public schools inaugurated, 323, 
343; local taxation, 344; il- 
literacy, 346; State Board of Ed- 
ucation, 347. 

Pulaski, Count, 120. 



Railroads, ante-bellum, 273. 

Reconstruction, presidential, 300; 
congressional, 306; Bullock, gov- 
ernor, 307; character of recon- 



struction government, 316; fail- 
ure of, 317. 

Religion, charter provisions, 45; 
English Church established, 86; 
freedom of guaranteed, constitu- 
tion of 1777, 127. 

Republican Party, origin of, 247, 
250. 

Revolutionary War, causes, loi ; 
division of sentiment in Georgia, 
105; preliminary activities, 107; 
fall of Savannah, 115; British 
Conquest of North Georgia, u8; 
Battle of Brier Creek, 119; Battle 
of Kettle Creek, 119; Americans 
and French attack Savannah. 
120; Evacuation of Savannah, 
123. 

Reynolds, John, royal governor, 85. 

Rice, 93, 99,^ loi, 268, 325. 

Royal Province, Georgia becomes, 
83. 



St. Augustine, besieged by Geor- 
gians, 74; 

Salzburgers, 49. 

Savannah, founded, 48; fall of, in 
1778, 115; attacked by Ameri- 
cans and French, 120; evacuated 
by British, 123 ; the Central of 
Georgia R. R., 274; besieged by 
Sherman, 294. 

Seacoast, 12. 

Secession, 251, seq.; convention, 
260; vote, 262. 

"Scalawag," 308. 

Schools, See Education. 

Scotch-Irish come to Georgia, 143. 

Scotch settle on the Altamaha, 53. 

Sherman, W. T., in Georgia, 289. 
seq. 

Silk, failure of efforts to produce, 

97- 
Slaton, John M., sketch of, 364. 



History of Georgia 



443 



Slavery, prohibited in colony, 59; 
allowed, 67; colonial slave code, 
95 ; member of in colonial pe- 
riod, 90; effect of cotton indus- 
try on, 213 ; treatment of slaves 
in 19th century, 220; slavehold- 
ing families, 226; slave prices, 
228; low character of labor, 230; 
effect on soil, 231; on society, 
232; in politics, 237, seq. ; civil 
war, 254; slaves emancipated by 
Thirteenth Amendment, 300. See 
negroes. 

Smith, Hoke, sketch of, 361. 

Soto, Hernando de, expedition 
through Georgia, 22. 

South Carolina, Georgia carved 
from, 45; slavery in, 60; Geor- 
gians move to, 71 ; niggardly 
support of Oglethorpe in Span- 
ish War, 74; Beauford Conven- 
tion, 151; nullification in, 173. 

Squatter sovereignty, 242; in the 
Charleston Democratic Conven- 
ton, i86o, 250. 

Spanish invad?* Georgia, 75. 

Stage coaches, 273. 

Stamp Act, Georgians resist, 103. 

Steamboats, 271. 

Stephens, A. H., advocates compro- 
mise of 1850, 243 ; sketch of, 
256; opposes secession, 258, 264. 

Stephens, William, sketch of, 55. 

Suffrage, educational and property 
qualifications, 379. 

Supreme Court, established, 283. 



Tariff, Protective, influence on 
politics, 173. 

Tax Laws, reform in administra- 
tion, 358. 

Telfair, Edward, iii. 

Thirteenth Amendment, 300. 



Tenant system, 329, seq. 

Tomo Chi Chi, 48; visits England, 
49. 

Toombs, Robert, supports compro- 
mise of 1850, 243; sketch of, 260; 
advocates secession, 260; and 
presidency of Southern Confed- 
eracy, 264; Secretary of State, 
265; reorganizes Democratic 
Party, 309. 

Transportation before railroads, 
270. 

Treutlen, John Adam, 128. 

Troup, George M., 161, 163; 
leader of Troup party, 171 ; 
sketch of, 189; removes Creek 
Indians from Georgia, 189, seq. 

Trustees of Colony, appointed, 42 ; 
resign, 8i. 

Twiggs, John, 118. 

U 

University of Georgia, 281, 349. 



Virginians settle in North Georgia, 
141. 

w 

Walker, W. H. T., 288. 

Walton, George, signer of Dec- 
laration of Independence, 113, 
117; elected delegate to Federal 
Convention, 1787, 132. 

Walton, John, 108. 

War Between the States, 287, seq. 

Watson, T. E., 361, 362. 

Wesley, John and Charles, 71. 

Western & Atlantic R. R,, 275. 

Whig Party, origin, X78; dissolu- 
tion, 247. 

Whiskey, prohibited in Colony, 61 ; 
prohibition removed, 64. 



U4 



History of Georgia 



Whitefield, the Reverend George, 
58, 67. 

Whitney, Eli, 212. 

Wilkes County, settled, 141. 

Wine, failure of efforts to pro- 
duce, 98. 

Wright, James, made royal gov- 
ernor, 86; leads royalist element 
in 1774, 107; arrested, 113; re- 



Savannah, 128; final surrender 
of, 123. 



Yazoo Land Fraud, disputes ovei 
western land, 152; sale by Geor- 
gia Legislature, 154; rescinding 
act, 158; cession by Georgia of 
western lands, 160; final settle- 



establishes royal government at ment, 162. 



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